NEED TO KNOW

A family found a mountain lion inside the backyard humane trap they set up after animals started disappearing from their yard

Wildlife officials released the big cat from the trap

Neighbors fear the wild animal could return after already targeting chickens and cats in the area

A San Diego County family expecting to catch a coyote instead came face-to-face with a more formidable predator.

According to KTLA, the Hernandez family of Fallbrook, Calif., discovered a mountain lion inside a humane cage trap they set up in their yard after several of their animals went missing from their property.

The unsettling chain of events began when chickens started disappearing from the family’s henhouse. “There was a big hole on the rooftop, and there were chickens missing and there were feathers all over the place,” Sonia Hernandez told KTLA5. Four cats owned by the Hernandez family also vanished, including one that was pregnant.

“She was going to have babies soon,” Hernandez said to the outlet, noting her mother-in-law was especially upset by the loss.

Believing a coyote was responsible, Hernandez had her father-in-law construct a humane cage trap and placed it on the rural property. On the night of Feb. 19, Hernandez’s husband went to check the trap and found a mountain lion lying calmly inside.

“So he woke everybody up, and we got up, and we were all surprised how big it was and how it looked,” Hernandez said. Her first thought, she added, was for her three children, ages five to nine.

After the initial shock, the family called 911. State wildlife officials arrived Friday morning and released the cougar from the trap. It ran off into the surrounding area. The decision surprised the family, who had hoped the animal would be relocated farther away.

“We weren’t really happy about that because of our children and animals,” Hernandez said to the outlet. The family’s neighbor, Jeanette Villegas, who owns horses, echoed those concerns. “Releasing that animal knowing it has a food source, I believe it may come back,” she told KTLA5.

Wildlife officials explained that under California law, any mountain lion captured in a private trap must be released in the same general area where it was captured.

Read the original article on People