Since voters\u2019 1990 passage of the California Wildlife Protection Act, mountain lions have been a protected species in the state, off-limits to hunters.<\/p>\n
For instances in which cougars are determined by state agents to be a threat to human life and property, wildlife authorities issue permits allowing the animals to be killed.<\/p>\n
The nonlethal hazing measures, in turn, can include bringing in a trapper \u201cwith trained lion dogs to go chase those animals\u201d \u2014 not to harm the big cats, Tira said, \u201cbut to give it a very negative experience, and let the lion know this is not a good place to hang out.\u201d<\/p>\n
When the trapper did bring his tracking dogs, days later, \u201cthey couldn\u2019t pick up the scent,\u201d said Barr.<\/p>\n
The evening after that first attack, at her request, her neighbor Jesse Cude posted up outside the alpaca enclosure. An experienced hunter, Cude brought a shotgun. He knew there were big cats in the area. Two years earlier, a game camera on his ranch captured an image of four mountain lions, together. In January, one of his sheep was killed by a mountain lion.<\/p>\n
Suddenly, in the half light of dusk, a pair of big cats sprinted past him, followed quickly by the distinctive, high-pitched \u201cscreaming,\u201d as he put it, of alpacas being attacked. After opening the gate and entering the pen, \u201cI see this shadow coming toward me,\u201d recalled Cude, who thought it was an alpaca.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut it was one of the cats, and it saw me about the time I identified it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cude fired his shotgun, but missed, he believes. \u201cI\u2019ve been shooting a shotgun since I was 12,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m pretty good with it.\u201d But it was dark, and the lion was going about 30 mph. \u201cAnd it was close, so your pattern isn\u2019t very big.\u201d<\/p>\n
As he reloaded, a second big cat raced past.<\/p>\n
Two more alpacas died that night.<\/p>\n
Because the lions were attacking Barr\u2019s animals, Cude noted, he was justified in firing his weapon. Also, he added, \u201cthey were running at me. I was in fear for my own safety at that point.\u201d<\/p>\n
Following the second attack, on Aug. 18, Fish and Wildlife issued Barr a lethal depredation permit to kill one adult lion. The trapper who had visited the previous day, returned.<\/p>\n
After keeping a vigil outside the alpaca enclosure from dusk until midnight or so, he left.<\/p>\n
Around 4 a.m., Barr recalled, she heard the dogs \u201cbarking\u201d and \u201ccarrying on.\u201d<\/p>\n
When she ventured out to investigate, \u201cI had two more dead.\u201d<\/p>\n
Martins, the mountain lion expert and managing partner of True Wild<\/a>, a company devoted to connecting people with nature by various means, including wildlife research projects and safaris, expressed sorrow upon learning about the attacks on Barr\u2019s alpacas.<\/p>\n \u201cThe trauma for the surviving animals and the livestock owner must be incredible,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m very sorry to hear about it.\u201d<\/p>\n