Mountain lion leaves carcass in backyard

Janine Marnien

LA CRESCENTA -- A mountain lion picked the backyard of Mary and

Charles Colvin’s home at the top of Lowell Avenue to have a deer over for

dinner, as Mary Colvin discovered over her morning coffee.

The half-eaten carcass of the deer was found in the bottom of a drain

on their half-acre property Wednesday morning by their 20-year-old dog,

Kirby.

“When I let him out that morning, he ran over and jumped into the

drain, and he never does that,” she said. “I went over to go get him and

looked and he was chowing down on a dead deer.”

She added that a neighbor had seen a mountain lion in the area about a

week ago, and that four years ago the Colvins had a small dog that fell

prey to a lion.

Although mountain lions will follow prey into the neighborhoods that

border the Angeles National Forest, they don’t normally pose a threat to

humans, said Fred DeLange, general manager of the Glendale Humane

Society.

“They don’t want to be around us, because the only predator for the

cat is us,” he said.

DeLange said that there were probably “one or two” mountain lions

roaming the foothills, but more in the surrounding forest areas.

Residents who spot mountain lions should keep their distance, stand as

tall as they can and make as much noise as they can. Also, small pets

should not be left outside, and pet food should not be left out

overnight.

People should not run away from mountain lions, as that “kicks in the

animal instinct,” DeLange said.

Mountain lion sightings should be reported to the Glendale Humane

Society at 242-1128.