A Colorado man who killed a mountain lion with a shovel probably saved his dog from being devoured by the big cat, an experienced Wyoming mountain lion hunter said.
“Don’t kid yourself, mountain lions love dogs,” Chi Neiman told Cowboy State Daily. “They will kill and eat dogs if they get a chance.”
Neiman is a Republican Wyoming House representative from Hulett. He and his family frequently hunt mountain lions, which are abundant in his area.
According to a report from Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) released Wednesday, a man told game agents that a 95-pound female lion approached him and his husky in a campground on the night of Sept. 25.
When the dog “enraged” the mountain lion, the man grabbed a shovel and killed the big cat with it, according to CPW.
That was quite a feat, Neiman said.
“As far as killing one (mountain lion) with a shovel, that would take some effort,” he said.
Cat Was Already Wounded
A wildlife officer responded the next morning to a report of an “aggressive mountain lion” being killed in a campground west of Cañon City in Fremont County, Colorado, according to CPW.
The officer arrived to find the man with a dead mountain lion on the hood of his Jeep. CPW did not release the man’s name.
“The man said his dog, a husky, began growling and barking as the lion approached,” CPW reports. “When the lion got within about 10 feet, the dog engaged it and the man grabbed a shovel, which he used to strike the lion in the head, killing it.
“The CPW officer’s preliminary finding was that the man was in fear of his life and acted in self-defense when confronted by a lion acting unusual and extremely aggressive.”
The mountain lion had apparently suffered previous wounds, including an injury to its front right paw and scratches on its back.
The incident is still under investigation, according to CPW.
“Because the man suffered no injuries and was never touched by the lion, this incident does not qualify as a mountain lion attack under CPW guidelines,” the agency states.
There have been 25 recorded mountain lion attacks on humans since 1990, according to CPW.
Dog Killers
If the mountain lion was previously hurt, it might have been starving because it was having trouble hunting natural prey, Neiman said.
So, it’s likely it saw the husky as an easy meal.
“I would say that if there was a dog there, and that lion was hurt and trying to get some food, I would think that dog is what drew it in,” he said.
Had the big cat succeeded in its apparent goal, it wouldn’t have been the first time that mountain lions took a toll on Colorado dogs.
Residents around Nederland, a small community in rural Boulder County, said they lost 23 dogs to mountain lions in 2022.
They reported that the situation reached a horrific climax toward the end of that year, when the big cats were suspected of slaying 15 dogs in 30 days.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
