A mountain lion reportedly attacked a 47-year-old man Sunday at his residence on County Road 24 west of Lebanon in Montezuma County, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
About 6:30 p.m., Michael D. Warren sustained several puncture wounds to his lower right leg from a reported mountain lion attack, according to a CPW news release from public information officer John Livingston.
CPW was trying to locate the mountain lion as of Thursday morning.
“This is an ongoing investigation,” said CPW District Wildlife Manager Matt Sturdevant. “We are still looking into it, and want to make sure we get the right offending lion. Any help from the surrounding area and the public would be helpful.”
A live trap was set to capture the lion. If captured, the lion would be euthanized because it injured a human, Livingston said.
Warren said he was in his home when he heard a thud on his front porch, and his dogs inside the house began barking aggressively. He believed his domestic cats might be fighting on the porch, so he went outside to investigate.
Warren said he opened the door to his porch and placed his right leg in the opened door while he tried to keep his dogs inside the house. Shortly after he placed his leg between the open door and the porch, he felt something grab his leg. He looked and said he saw a mountain lion run away. Security camera footage later confirmed his mountain lion sighting.
“It was a shock and happened so fast, not something you expect when you step onto your porch,” Warren said when contacted by The Journal. “It just grabbed and latched its claws onto my leg. Luckily my dogs were right behind me and chased it off.”
He said another piece of luck was that he was wearing blue jeans and long johns, which minimized the injury.
Security camera video shows a medium-size mountain lion bolting through a porch screen with Warren’s dogs, Daisy and Harley, chasing after it. Warren and his friend chased after the dogs, and called them back as the lion fled across Road 24.
Warren has seen mountain lions in the area and suspects the one he encountered killed two of his cats, Tom and Wiggles, one of which he has had for 10 years.
“I feel bad because the front porch is supposed to be their safe area. My other two cats are skittish now, I’m trying to get them to stay inside,” he said.
Warren said he appreciates wildlife and realizes his home is in mountain lion territory. But he feels when one becomes brave enough to come up onto a porch of a home and attacks pets and people, it should be put down.
“I hope it is caught, it does not seem to be deterred,” he said.
Warren said he has some uncertainty now stepping out onto his porch, or leaving his house.
He has installed motion detectors and cameras that send alerts to his phone so he can monitor what is going on.
“I’m keeping an eye out,” Warren said.
Warren called police dispatch to report the attack. He told dispatch that he did not want medical treatment for the several punctures on his leg.
CPW made attempts to locate the mountain lion throughout Sunday evening. Officers again responded to the area the morning of Feb. 28 and resumed the site investigation. They also used hound dogs trained specifically to track mountain lions, but they did not find the mountain lion.
“The strength of the scent had deteriorated,” said Area Wildlife Manager Adrian Archuleta.
CPW used the hounds in coordination with the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
The trap and game cameras were placed at the location of the incident. The trap was baited with a piece of roadkill deer.
The cameras and DNA evidence collected at the scene would be used to determine whether the captured lion was the offender, Archuleta said.
Warren had four domestic cats. Two recently went missing, leading CPW to believe the mountain lion previously visited the location and returned the night of the attack.
Another mountain lion incident was reported Feb. 18 to CPW from the same area after it preyed on chickens and a cat.
“Judging by the tracks we found and the footage we have along with the victim’s statement, we believe it is a young, subadult lion,” Sturdevant said. “We also believe it is the same lion that had been hanging out in the area for a bit.”
Archuleta said lion attacks on people are rare, but when a person is injured, the animal is “typically euthanized for human health and safety,” he said.
If captured and euthanized, the animal would be tested for disease, Archuleta said.
Southwest Colorado is good mountain lion habitat, he said. Lions can be attracted to easy meals around homes.
CPW advises residents to help prevent run-ins with lions by reducing attractants such as pet food outside the home. Residents also are advised to secure chicken and livestock pens with electric fencing, use guard dogs for grazing animals and turn on exterior lights.
“If a lion is seen in proximity to homes, make it feel unwelcome,” Archuleta said.
Yell at it, bang pots and pans, turn on outdoor lights, use your key fob to trigger your car horn. Also, avoid attracting deer to your property because they are the main prey of mountain lions.
It is illegal to shoot a mountain lion without a hunting tag unless it is attacking you or is about to attack you.
Sunday night’s incident is the first reported mountain lion attack of a human in Colorado since March 11, 2020, and the first attack in Southwest Colorado since 2008.
It is the 23rd known attack of a mountain lion causing injury to a human in Colorado since 1990.
Three other attacks in Colorado since 1990 have resulted in human deaths. CPW does not characterize lion depredation of pets or other animals as attacks.
Although mountain lion attacks are rare, it is important to know how to avoid or manage potential encounters. To learn more about living with mountain lions in Colorado, go to https://cpw.state.co.us/lions
jmimiaga@the-journal.com
