2 wild felines caught in Utah County

Published: Thursday, June 18, 2009 11:34 p.m. MDT
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SPANISH FORK — No saucers of milk for these kitties.

In the past week, Division of Wildlife Resources officers have trapped two larger-than-normal furry felines that infiltrated Utah County neighborhoods.

Wednesday night, officers got a call from Spanish Fork residents who noticed a cougar roaming through their neighborhood around 7 p.m., said Spanish Fork Police Sgt. Brad Mitchell. An animal control officer eventually spotted the cat run into an open garage.

The officer contacted the homeowners, who quickly shut their garage, trapping the animal inside, Mitchell said.

The cat was well-behaved and simply waited in the garage for DWR officers to arrive and tranquilize him. It was later released into the wild.

Last weekend, Eagle Mountain residents near 8900 Torrey Pines Loop noticed a mountain lion, which ran through the neighborhood and jumped into the basement window well of a home, said Utah County Sheriff's Sgt. Jeff Cornell.

Officers responded and found the animal hiding in the window well, Cornell said.

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DWR officers were called in while deputies kept a crowd of residents away from the home, Cornell said. When an officer approached the animal with a tranquilizer gun, the mountain lion bounded from the window and took off running through the neighborhood.

Another resident offered his hound dog, Cornell said, which tracked and cornered the mountain lion in another window well. While the dog kept the animal at bay, the animal was tranquilized and later released back into the wild.

— Sara Israelsen-Hartley

and James Davis

Recent comments

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Animal Welfare | June 20, 2009 at 10:33 a.m.

Building homes on deer feeding grounds invites their preditors also.

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