LeafBlade12345
Songster
Well, I had quite a scare this weekend. Neighbor's texted, telling us to watch out for a mountain lion/bobcat that was in their yard! They woke up to growling and looked outside. The husband spotted a tail, but the woman only made out a cat shape. If the husband really saw a tail, I'm guessing mountain lion, and they sent pictures of paw prints in their yard, a little too big for any bobcat. Someone in my household also heard the cat when he got up to use the restroom at night. After narrowing it down to almost certainly a mountain lion, I was nervous enough. Taking my dog out after securing all the animals, I heard rustling in the nearby bushes. My dog, who is part hunting dog, froze, growled, then began to bark madly. I stepped back slowly, pulling my dog closer. I walked backwards to the house, got inside, and shut the door. My dog kept barking at the windows and door. Worried for the safety of my outdoor animals, I was ready to call a warden or animal control over, but then I realized that the rustling in the bushes wasn't very loud, probably not from a big animal. So, taking my dog, a flashlight, and a weapon, I shakily went back to the bushes. The rustling started again, my dog barking madly. Holding so many items at once, my grip on the leash wasn't tight enough. My dog pulled forward, the leash was pulled out of my hands, and my dog shot into the bushes. I called and called for him, desperate, shining my flashlight around. I heard growling and snarls from the bushes, but I didn't want to hurt my dog, so I did a stupid thing. I followed him into the bushes. I flashed my light over to a corner and saw.....a rabbit, my dog frantically chasing it. I have never been so relieved in my life. I leashed my dog and took him back inside, counting my lucky stars that it wasn't a mountain lion, or both my dog and I may have ended up dead. The lion's still around, so I am locking up my animals and keeping my dog leashed until the cat either moves on or is dispatched. I am debating calling a warden. I would hate for a mountain lion that is simply surviving and hasn't killed any domestic animals or humans, as far as I know, to be killed, but I'd also hate to have my family, myself, my pets and livestock, or anyone and anything killed because I didn't say anything. Anyway, I had quite a scare.