Gunshots Don't Scare Off Mountain Lion Who Killed Pet Goat
EVERGREEN, Colo. (CBS4) - An Evergreen resident is warning her neighbors to watch out after a mountain lion killed one of her pet goats. It happened Friday night near Old Squaw Pass Road.
Toro was one of two pet goats that belong to the woman and her family.
"He came right up this pasture here and jumped over this (fence) like it was nothing," she said.
The two goats had been far more than just a way to keep their grass chewed down.
"We're heartbroken because he was a pet, not just an animal," she said.
The goats spent their nights in a fenced-in pen, but that apparently wasn't enough protection. Within the pen was a wooden enclosure with a door that may have been ripped off by the lion.
"This cat was hungry and determined. And my husband is a pretty big guy and I am not a small girl and it couldn't care less how we are," she said.
Her husband is a Jefferson County Sheriff's deputy. He fired several shots try to scare off the lion, but it was determined to stay nearby and eat its kill.
In January, another Evergreen resident took pictures of two mountain lions whose targets were dogs. (One dog was killed and another was injured in that attack.)
The Colorado Division of Parks and Wildlife warns pet owners in areas where the lions roam to completely enclose pets in cages from dusk to dawn.
Thomas Ray knows the danger of mountain lions from an encounter while walking his dog Rocky two years ago.
"We stopped and it turned around and saw us and came straight down toward us and pinned us down about 10 feet from us," he said.
They managed to get away when a bicyclist distracted the lion.
Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials say people are rarely attacked by the lions, but it can happen. They strongly suggest that those who live in the foothills and mountains turn on their lights and make noise when coming outdoors after dark.
UPDATE: The name of the owner of the pet goats has been removed from this story at her request.
CBS4's Rick Sallinger is a Peabody award winning reporter who has been with the station more than two decades doing hard news and investigative reporting. Follow him on Twitter @ricksallinger.
