Last week, I wrote a column about a dozen goats that have been killed in the Los Gatos area recently. The goats’ owners say mountain lions are to blame.
Since then, readers have offered their own theories, including wolves from the Oregon-California range, humans, pet dogs running in a pack, chupacabras and — personal favorite — Big Foot are to blame.
I’ve also received quite a few emails from Bay Area ranchers and people with first-hand knowledge of the attacks that distinctly point the finger at mountain lions, despite this not being the textbook definition of how mountain lions operate. They don’t kill for sport, they eat what they kill and they don’t hunt in packs.
There are always exceptions to the rules, so why should nature be any different? As at least one cougar was photographed at the scene, and the footprints left behind belong to a mountain lion, I think that’s what we have to go with. Sorry, Big Foot supporters.
One rancher offers an opinion based on experience that could partially explain what’s going on.
DEAR JOAN: I am a rancher who lives in the east foothills of San Jose. Several years ago, we had the exact same experience as the person whose goats are being killed.
In our case, the killing happened several times, sometimes at night but not always. One evening, as I was feeding my stock dogs in their kennels just before dark, I looked down a draw and saw a mother mountain lion and two cubs.
As it turned out, she was teaching her cubs to hunt, and they were practicing on the goats and sheep that we had in a 2-acre pen. We saw the lions in the pen one day or we never would have believed it. The lions killed more than they could eat, and they couldn’t get most of them over the fence, so they were left in the goat pen.
We solved the problem by moving the animals to much safer pens right near our home, where the lions could not get to them. Eventually, the lions lost interest and went away. This has happened more than once over the years.
Peggy Thompson, San Jose
DEAR PEGGY: It certainly could have been a mother mountain lion teaching her cubs how to hunt, although that typically would also include eating what they killed. I’ve advised those in the area, especially the rancher who lost the goats, to notify the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. I believe they did that once and got no response, but they need to try again.
The cubs will stay with their mother for up to two years, and it might be necessary to capture and relocate the family to stop repeated killings.
As I said in the original column, there are devices intended to scare or warn away predators that might work in protecting livestock in open pens. Livestock also should be moved in as close as possible to inhabited areas to discourage predators and provide some extra protection and oversight. Two readers also suggested getting Anatolian shepherds to help protect the animals.
Thanks for all of the suggestions and insight. That’s one of the many reasons I like writing this column.
Have a question for Joan?
Use this form to submit questions. Photos should be mailed separately to jmorris@bayareanewsgroup.com.
