Big Cats on the Prowl: Five Mountain Lions Roam Around Colorado Neighborhood First Night of April

On the first night of April, five big cats or mountain lions roam a neighborhood in Colorado.

According to Jack Lowenstein of CBS Colorado, mountain lions occasionally approach people closer than one might anticipate because they are a natural component of Colorado's ecology.

Mountain Lions in the Neighborhood

A range of mountain lions was spotted walking through Carolyn Andrews' neighborhood at night on April 1, and she shared a Ring doorbell video of the incident with CBS Colorado. Approximately 67 miles due west of Denver, in Silverthorne, she resides.

In the clip, five of the big cats-mountain lions can be seen skulking around her neighborhood just before 11 o'clock on what appears to be a calm and cool evening.

However, this video serves as a reminder of the significance of pet owners exercising caution in mountain towns. Colorado Parks & Wildlife advises residents not to leave their pets outside all night.

Parents should remember to watch over young children at night when encounters like that one are possible thanks to the neighborhood mountain lions.

This incident occurred as a distant encounter that could be appreciated as a sight to see when nature takes the initiative to come close to home, but, as residents hoped, not too close, CBS Colorado reports.

Big Cats in Residential Areas

This is not the first time that big cats ventured into neighborhoods. After numerous bobcats were spotted by city residents in February of this year, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) issued a warning to Colorado Springs pet owners to keep an eye on their animals. At that time, CPW issued a warning, cautioning that a privacy fence may not always be sufficient to safeguard domestic pets from bobcats as well as other predators.

In contrast to bears that sleep in the winter, bobcats and big cats such as mountain lions are active all year long, so the threat is always present, according to CPW via FOX 21 Local News. Additionally, having a fenced yard does not guarantee that your pets are secure when left unattended.

Cat owners should also take precautions to lessen the risk to their pets because, according to CPW, they make easy prey for predators, which could result in more serious problems for residents.

According to CPW, predators may continue to congregate in locations where they might not be wanted if there are free-roaming cats present.

Mountain Lions

According to Cabin Life, the mountain lion is the real big cat in North America. The species has a long tail and a sand-colored coat. Cougars, which measure 6 to 8 feet long and weigh between 150 and 160 pounds, almost exclusively prey on larger herbivores like deer.

Though estimated to number 5,000 in Colorado alone, mountain lions are rarely seen despite their large size. Hikers are much more likely to come across posted signs instructing them on how to handle a mountain lion than to come across actual tracks, scat, or an animal. The only people who have a chance of seeing a cougar are those who actively pursue them, especially with the help of trained dogs.