Mountain lion killed after killing family dog

VICTOR, Idaho (KIFI) - During the morning hours Monday, Idaho State Police, Teton County Sheriff and Idaho Fish and Game were dispatched to a Victor home after a mountain lion had killed a family dog.

Fish and Game regional communications manager James Brower says the harsh winter has driven the cat's prey down causing the animal to venture outside of typical winter ranges.

"We have deer that come very close to town. And that's one of their favorite food sources. That's their prey. So when we get deer in town that are followed by the mountain lions and usually they're pretty sneaky," he said. "They're only seen typically at night, they're stalking those deer, but on occasion, they become hungry and desperate, too."

Monday's incident ended when the big cat was killed by troopers and deputies. Brower says unfortunately, when it comes to predators, that is often the case.

"When they're habituated to humans and to being near humans, they just become someone else's problem somewhere else. So they continue to be a safety concern. So often those animals have to be put down."

He says it's to ensure overall safety.

"(It's), not something anybody wants to do. But unfortunately sometimes it's something that we have to do to protect the public."

He says if you live in an area where you will encounter these predators, there's some options you can do.

"There's quite a few things that we recommend people do if they do have pets and they live in kind of those rural areas. One is keeping your your pet on a leash. If you're taking them out at night, have a bright flashlight or turn the house lights on and make some noise and then pay attention to your dog. If your dog is kind of on edge or barking at something that you can't see, they can usually hear and see things before. We can sort of pay attention to that and make sure you take them back inside."

He continued, "If that's the case, feeding them inside is also a good thing to do. If you leave a bunch of dog food out that can attract things like raccoons that mountain lions will also target on occasion. So you don't want to attract anything into your yard that could be considered a prey source for a mountain lion. And just be very aware of your situation where you're at, have a light, maybe even have some bear spray with you if you you think you may be in an area that you would encounter mountain lion and just pay attention, look around. Keep you head on a swivel."

Brower encourages people to call immediately if they spot an animal causing trouble in their yard. He says that allows them to help as quickly as possible.

"Give us a call. You can call our Citizens Against Poaching hotline if it's after hours or you can call your local dispatch, call your local sheriff's office. They have the ability to come and help as well. If you are experiencing something that's maybe in the middle of the night or sometime when it's hard to get a hold of us at our regional office, you can definitely call your local, law enforcement."

If you want to call the citizens against poaching hotline you can reach it at: 1-800-632-5999, or you can visit the Fish and Game website here.