LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) – The Laredo Police Department reported on Friday morning a sighting of a mountain lion by the 100 block of Crest Lane in south Laredo.
A man who saw the animal told KGNS he opened his garage door and saw the mountain lion resting.
He immediately called 9-1-1 and police issued an advisory asking the public to stay in place and bring in any pets until the Texas State Game Wardens have contained the animal.
According to the Laredo Police Department, officials tried to sedate the animal.
However, it tried to get away and due to the safety of the public, the animal was shot and later died.
“It’s a very highly populated area here, we are not far away from certain areas of development. Pretty much within walking distance, you can walk into “monte” and brush. The animal for whatever reason wound up in this area. The area where it was actually located was surrounded by high grass, obviously you can understand because of the high amount of rain and sun that we’ve had [in] this crazy month, the grass was quite high, and it was easy for him to hide. Probably part of his instinct to do so. So for the time being, they were trying to arrange a plan with the state game wardens to try to save the animal by relocating it. Obviously, they need to tranquilize the animal—it’s what we did a few years ago. We had an animal of this type, an actual larger animal than this type a few years ago in south Laredo near Canones. Unfortunately, the animal became agitated—it’s part of its natural instinct of survivability. It wound up becoming aggressive, according to what I’m being told by my officers. [At] that point was when officers had no choice—it was looking for a way out. We’re surrounded by residential areas. When I arrived, there were people outside, mowing their lawns. People outside with their dogs. So, had the animal gotten out, we wouldn’t be able to keep the area safe. So, for the safety of the community here, these heavy residential areas, the animal had to be neutralized and it did die” Joe Baeza, Public Information Officer for the Laredo Police Department told us.
A day before, on Thursday, an east Laredo neighborhood had also reported the sighting of a mountain lion shortly before 9 a.m.
The footage captured Thursday morning, July 11, by a social media user, depicts a wild cat jumping over a gate and into someone’s backyard in the Lago del Valle area.
Wildlife experts note that Webb County and much of South Texas provide ideal habitats for mountain lions, citing drought conditions and proximity to ranchlands as factors influencing their distribution.
For more headlines, click here.
Copyright 2024 KGNS. All rights reserved.