Mountain lion hunted in Eagle Rock

Authorities are working to trap a mountain lion that made its way into the backyard of a home in Eagle Rock today.

Los Angeles police received a call about 8:45 a.m. that a mountain lion had been seen in the backyard of a house on the 5000 block of College View Avenue, said Officer Norma Eisenman of the LAPD.

Several animal care agencies are on the scene, she said. The animal, which also has been sighted from a Los Angeles County sheriff’s helicopter, is boxed in, she said.

Police are urging people to keep children and pets inside, said Steve Martarano, a spokesman for the California Department of Fish and Game.

“We’re trying to close in and tranquilize it,” he said. “So far it poses no threat to the public and hasn’t attacked any humans, pets, or other animals in the area.”

Occasional mountain lion sightings are a fact of life for foothill residents, whose backyards are within miles of the creatures’ habitat, Martarano said. Still, he said it was “very unlikely” for mountain lions to be roaming deep in a residential neighborhood like Eagle Rock.

In February 2006, a mountain lion made national news when it wandered into an Altadena neighborhood and caused a daylong standoff, Martarano recalled. During that incident, authorities locked down nearby Edison Elementary School for four hours before the cat was tranquilized and taken away.

Last year, two fatal mountain lion attacks on dogs, including a 60-pound Labrador mix, occurred in August in La Crescenta and Altadena. It remains unclear whether the same animal killed both dogs, authorities said; the attacks occurred about six miles apart.

Animal experts advise foothill-area homeowners to keep their pets indoors, especially at night, and to avoid leaving pet food or water bowls outside. Birdbaths, kiddie pools and other standing water sources could also attract mountain lions or animals that they prey on, such as deer.

The Department of Fish and Game estimates that California has between 4,000 and 6,000 mountain lions. Adult male mountain lions can weigh 120 to 150 pounds and females 65 to 80 pounds.

Deer are mountain lions’ favorite prey, but they will also attack goats, sheep, cats, dogs, raccoons and, less often, horses.

Mountain lion attacks on people are rare in California, according to state records. Since 1890, 14 verified mountain lion attacks on 16 humans have occurred in the state, resulting in six deaths. According to state records, the most recent mountain lion attack on a human in California was in January 2007 in Humboldt County. The victim, a hiker, survived.

francisco.varaorta@latimes.com