DESCANSO, Calif. (KGTV) - Concerns are growing in the Descanso area, after a string of mountain lion attacks on pets and livestock.
Nighttime surveillance video from a home off Highway 79 shows a mountain lion inside a fenced-in, backyard, standing over its kill.
On Tuesday morning, distraught homeowners would discover their two beloved pet goats dead in the pen.
Video reveals how the mountain lion got into the pen. One clip shows the mountain lion pacing along a seven-foot fence, before jumping over it.
For Yessenia Fagan, the video is hard to watch and all too familiar.
Less than three miles away, along Riverside Drive, on Christmas Eve morning, her family awoke to find their pets, Billy the goat and a sheep named Ma, dead inside in a fenced area on their property.
“Everyone was kind of emotional. Crying, a lot of crying,” said Fagan.
Nearby, they found the paw prints of a mountain lion.
“We know we live in their world, but my grandparents have lived here for 30 years. This has never happened before,” said Fagan.
It also appears to be happening more and more. Fagan says in the past four months, some six neighbors have reported similar attacks of pets and livestock.
“It's getting really crazy. It’s kind of getting out of control. There’s a summer camp close by … We’re fearful, because we have little kids around here, you know. So, it’s a little scary,” said Fagan.
Fagan says her family reported their attack to state Fish and Wildlife officials.
A Fish and Wildlife biologist confirmed to ABC 10News they have received several reports, but few requests for further investigation on the properties to confirm the attack.
That request would start a three-step process where the homeowner would be asked to install deterrents, including light, sound, and options like dogs. The final step - and last res be a permit to kill the mountain lion. Fish and Wildlife officials tell us none of these cases have entered the three-step process.
The biologist told ABC 10News that DNA testing is only used in cases involving a human attack.
In the most recent attack on the goats, the homeowner declined a visit from a biologist, believing the video was sufficient evidence.
Fish and Wildlife officials say the visit is required if a homeowner wants a permit for deterrents.
