Yahoo Movies Mountain lions kill 9 dogs near one Colorado town. Here are tips for keeping pets safe
Nine dogs have been killed or taken by mountain lions near one town in Colorado since August, according to wildlife officials.
Pet owners in Nederland, a town nestled within the mountains of Colorado’s Front Range, have been terrorized by the mountain lions hunting their dogs. In some cases, dogs survived the attacks and were reunited with their owners, officials said.
Other times, owners fought back against the stealthy predators and defended their pets.
The attacks started in April, when a mountain lion pounced on a pit bull that was running off leash with her owner, 9News reported.
Sixty mountain lions incidents have been reported in 2022 to Colorado Parks and Wildlife in the area. The vast majority of those incidents were sightings only, and seven of them included aggressive behavior from the lions and 10 of them involved pets, officials said.
How to keep your pets safe
To address residents’ concerns about how to keep their pets safe, Colorado Parks and Wildlife shared tips with residents during a community discussion on Wednesday, Dec. 7. Experts explained that the most effective ways to stave off an attack is to be vigilant and to predator-proof your house.
Make sure you’re not accidentally attracting wildlife with stray food, trash, hay, or anything else that might lure skunks, deer, or any wild animal to your home. If prey animals congregate around your home, predators — including mountain lions — won’t be far behind, officials said.
Make mountain lions feel as unwelcome around your home as you can. Motion sensor lighting or flood lights can be effective, as well as turning on a radio with human voices talking to scare them off and make them want to leave.
When you are out on the trails, it’s important to keep your pets close to you — including keeping dogs on a leash. Roaming pets are easier prey and can even attract mountain lions.
If you need to let your pet outside when it’s dark, it’s recommended that you check the area before letting them out and keep an eye on them.
It’s also a good idea to make a lot of noise and commotion when you are letting them out and shine a light in the area where they’re doing their business.
Alert authorities if you see a mountain lion
Wildlife officials asked that residents continue reporting mountain lion incidents so staff can map out sightings and come up with a plan to deter the predators from the area.
Locals cobbled together an online map of recent encounters in Nederland, which town officials posted to Facebook. They did so to “help others be on the lookout” because of the “recent uptick in mountain lion activity in the peak to peak area.”
Despite concern for their pets, residents seemed to acknowledge that it’s just part of living in the mountains. On a post on Nederland’s Instagram account, one person commented suggesting a houndsman — a person in charge of hunting dogs — should “let loose and manage these lions.”
“Manage what? Wild animals being wild animals on their territory?” another shot back. “Maybe you shouldn’t live in the high country if you don’t want to deal with them.”
Many others chimed in with similar sentiments.
“We can co-exist, but you can’t just expect to let your pets roam alone and be safe in the mountains, it is not a reality unless you are vigilant,” one wrote. “Don’t live up in their territory if you aren’t gonna change your lifestyle to co-exist.”
Still, in extreme cases, even these tips have failed to keep pets safe.
Mountain lion attacks in California
Multiple dog owners in California have recently been terrorized by mountain lion attacks.
A mountain lion surprised a man walking his dog on Tuesday, Dec. 6 in the same area where a lion hunted a Chihuahua that was walking on a leash in Hollywood Hills in November, NBC 4 reported.
Both encounters were captured by home security cameras. The most recent incident showed the big cat pacing back and forth in front of the house, the outlet reported.
Last week, a mountain lion dragged a family’s dog out of their house in Sonoma County, according to news reports.
Luckily the dog survived after the dog’s owner chased the lion off, but the same cat returned the next day and killed two of their goats, KTLA reported.
Crews tracked down and euthanized the brazen mountain lion, the outlet reported.
“This is not normal, there’s something wrong with this mountain lion,” dog owner Rebecca Kracker told KTVU. “She shouldn’t be walking into my house. She should have some fear.”
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