Skip to main content /US
CNN.com /US
CNN TV
EDITIONS






Mountain lion shot in California back yard

mountain lion
The mountain lion was first seen peeking through the fence of the suburban Los Angeles residence at about 4:40 a.m.  


MONROVIA, California (CNN) -- A mountain lion that ventured into a backyard bamboo patch in suburban Los Angeles, and sat peeking through a hole in a fence, was shot dead Friday by a Fish and Game officer.

The original plan had been to tranquilize the animal, said Sgt. Richard Wagnom, of the Monrovia Police Department.

But the darts are effective only when shot into muscle, and only the lion's head was protruding from the fence, so the officer used a bullet instead, Wagnom said.

Department of Fish and Game regional manager Chuck Raysbrook said the game officer who shot the mountain lion believed it would be dangerous to try to tranquilize the animal in such an urban area, even if he could have gotten a clean shot.

"Reaction to a tranquilizer isn't always predictable -- sometimes animals that are tranquilized can exhibit wild behavior or don't demonstrate they've been affected at all," Raysbrook said.

He said the animal was displaying unusual behavior and there were people in the area, including children going to school.

Police had said earlier that the animal appeared to be sick or injured.

After shooting it, officials put the cat into a large bag and carried it to a pickup truck.

The mountain lion was first seen peeking through the fence about 4:40 a.m., in the middle of a residential block about three-quarters of a mile from the San Gabriel Mountains, where the animals are sometimes seen, said Lt. Rick Miglia of the Monrovia Police Department.

Police said they could not remember a mountain lion venturing so deep into a residential area.

Martine Colette, the director of the Wildlife Waystation, a rescue facility for big game animals that sometimes helps capture mountain lions, said she believes officials could have avoided killing the lion.

"When an animal is sickly and allows people to come close in proximity, the tranquilizer would have been effective and it may have been put in a catch-pole. What it comes down to is you need a team of experienced, trained people on-call to respond to these types of crisis," she said.



 
 
 
 







RELATED SITES:

 Search   

Back to the top