Mountain lion captured after being spotted in hotel parking lot

THE FOLLOWING IS A NEWS RELEASE FROM IDAHO FISH AND GAME.

LAVA HOT SPRINGS – A mountain lion was dispatched by Idaho Department Fish and Game in the town of Lava Hot Springs just before midnight on January 4.

Bannock County Sheriff’s Office notified Idaho Fish and Game at 6:47 Friday night that a mountain lion had been observed walking through Lava Hot Springs, even coming within several feet of people according to multiple reports.

Tara Potter of Lava Hot Springs and her family were driving up Main Street around 6:40 p.m. after spending some time at the public hot pools located in the middle of town. Tara’s 12-year old son said, “Mom, there is a mountain lion!”

Tara responded to her son, “No. There wouldn’t be a mountain lion right in town.”

However, both she and her husband, Nick, quickly saw that their son was right. They observed a mountain lion crossing the street, headed toward the public hot pools. Nick used his vehicle to block the pathway to the pools. The lion stopped and turned to look at them.

“We could see one of its eyes was messed up,” Tara said.

According to Tara, the lion made its way to the Lava Spa Motel parking lot before disappearing. By 6:43, Tara had called 911.

Tyler Peterson, a conservation officer with Idaho Fish and Game, and a deputy from the Bannock County Sheriff’s Office responded, but the cat had slipped out of sight and was assumed to have moved on.

“At that point, we thought that the cat was gone for the night and we wouldn’t be able to continue the investigation until the morning,” Peterson said.

AT 11 p.m., Peterson was notified that the cat had returned and was sitting at the corner of the post office in Lava Hot Springs, allowing passers-by to take pictures of it.

This time Peterson, two Bannock County deputies, and an officer with the Idaho State Police responded and discovered the cat was on the move down a side road in town. As they approached, they could see that the female mountain lion was malnourished, weighing at most 60-70 pounds, and was injured. It had a gash below its left eye and appeared blind in that eye.

Once authorities determined that a safe zone of fire was established, the animal was dispatched.

“This was truly a team effort,” Peterson said. “Without the calls from the public and the assistance of Bannock County deputies and Idaho State Police, I am not sure that the end result would have been the same. It took different eyes in different places to help us track this cat in the dark through town. Thanks to all who helped.”