mountain lion eating barn cats
Posted: Sat Mar 05, 2011 9:32 pm
From the Rapid City Journal
http://www.rapidcityjournal.com/news/ar ... 03286.html
Man finds mountain lion eating barn cats near Custer
Nick Penzenstadler Journal staff | Posted: Sunday, February 27, 2011 11:00 pm | (9)
Tom Cox said six of his barn cats had mysteriously disappeared over the past few days. On Sunday morning, he solved the mystery when he caught the culprit in the act.
A malnourished 4-year-old female lion was standing in his small barn feasting on another one of the cats that Cox keeps to control mice.
“I went out to get some firewood, and I saw something move out of the corner of my eye. I looked over, and it was a mountain lion, standing there 2 to 3 feet away from me, eating one of my cats,” said Cox, who lives on his hobby farm about a half-mile east of Custer.
Cox backed away from the lion and went inside where he called the sheriff’s office, which then put him in touch with a Game, Fish & Parks conservation officer. All the while the lion stayed in the barn, Cox said.
When conservation officer Blair Waite arrived, he assessed the situation and realized the animal was behaving oddly and wasn’t healthy.
“I saw the cat was an adult and was quite emaciated. Its ribs and backbone were sticking out, and its neck muscles were gaunt,” Waite said. “Apparently, it either was starving or had some disease and wasn’t able to catch food. So, I euthanized it.”
Waite said it isn’t uncommon for mountain lions to kill domestic cats, but this lion needed to be killed, based on its health and location.
“We’ve had a number of lion complaints in this court just east of Custer,” Waite said. “They’ve scared the cats out of there, and it’s consistent that the cat comes back again after a period of time. It was in really poor shape and was not acting normal. It had no fear of people; it was literally 3 feet from this gentleman.”
Waite estimated the female lion was about 4 years old and should have weighed 80 to 90 pounds. Instead, he guessed the animal weighed just 60 pounds.
This week, the lion will undergo testing to assess any diseases it may have had.
Although he felt bad to see the cat killed, Cox worried that the miniature horses he owns may have been its next dinner.
“When they’re starving like that, they just don’t have it in ‘em to catch something out in the wild,” Cox said, adding that he has never seen a mountain lion on his property in 20 years.
In December, GF&P officials killed a mountain lion they believe was responsible for eating two miniature ponies near Johnson Siding.
“I’ve got animals, and there are kids within 200 feet of my place, so I totally understand why they have to euthanize them,” Cox said.
Contact Nick Penzenstadler at 394-8415 or nick.penzenstadler@rapidcityjournal.com
http://www.rapidcityjournal.com/news/ar ... 03286.html
Man finds mountain lion eating barn cats near Custer
Nick Penzenstadler Journal staff | Posted: Sunday, February 27, 2011 11:00 pm | (9)
Tom Cox said six of his barn cats had mysteriously disappeared over the past few days. On Sunday morning, he solved the mystery when he caught the culprit in the act.
A malnourished 4-year-old female lion was standing in his small barn feasting on another one of the cats that Cox keeps to control mice.
“I went out to get some firewood, and I saw something move out of the corner of my eye. I looked over, and it was a mountain lion, standing there 2 to 3 feet away from me, eating one of my cats,” said Cox, who lives on his hobby farm about a half-mile east of Custer.
Cox backed away from the lion and went inside where he called the sheriff’s office, which then put him in touch with a Game, Fish & Parks conservation officer. All the while the lion stayed in the barn, Cox said.
When conservation officer Blair Waite arrived, he assessed the situation and realized the animal was behaving oddly and wasn’t healthy.
“I saw the cat was an adult and was quite emaciated. Its ribs and backbone were sticking out, and its neck muscles were gaunt,” Waite said. “Apparently, it either was starving or had some disease and wasn’t able to catch food. So, I euthanized it.”
Waite said it isn’t uncommon for mountain lions to kill domestic cats, but this lion needed to be killed, based on its health and location.
“We’ve had a number of lion complaints in this court just east of Custer,” Waite said. “They’ve scared the cats out of there, and it’s consistent that the cat comes back again after a period of time. It was in really poor shape and was not acting normal. It had no fear of people; it was literally 3 feet from this gentleman.”
Waite estimated the female lion was about 4 years old and should have weighed 80 to 90 pounds. Instead, he guessed the animal weighed just 60 pounds.
This week, the lion will undergo testing to assess any diseases it may have had.
Although he felt bad to see the cat killed, Cox worried that the miniature horses he owns may have been its next dinner.
“When they’re starving like that, they just don’t have it in ‘em to catch something out in the wild,” Cox said, adding that he has never seen a mountain lion on his property in 20 years.
In December, GF&P officials killed a mountain lion they believe was responsible for eating two miniature ponies near Johnson Siding.
“I’ve got animals, and there are kids within 200 feet of my place, so I totally understand why they have to euthanize them,” Cox said.
Contact Nick Penzenstadler at 394-8415 or nick.penzenstadler@rapidcityjournal.com