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Mountain Lion Sighted Near Sand Canyon Home

A Sand Canyon resident had a close encounter with a mountain lion on his property Monday night.


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The mountain lion was spotted at around 10:30 p.m. by Victor Micarone at his home off of Iron Canyon Road.

Micarone was in his backyard when he noticed one of his cats was acting erratic.

“I have two domestic house cats,” said Micarone. “I looked over and one of them was bouncing off the door.”

He then looked back, and came face to face with the mountain lion.

“I turned around, and he was crouched right there,” said Micarone. “He was about five to six feet away from me.”

While wildlife officials advise against running from a mountain lion so it isn’t prompted to chase, Micarone said that he immediately ran in one direction, and the mountain lion took off in another.

He went out later to see if the cougar was still there, but all he was able to find were pawprints and a clump of dirt torn up from where it had been.

Torn-up dirt from where the mountain lion had been. Photo courtesy of Victor Micarone.

A pawprint left by the mountain lion. Photo courtesy of Victor Micarone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mountain lions and other wild animals need three things to survive, according to Ranger Frank Hoffman of the Placerita Canyon Nature Center: food, water, and shelter. Factors, including fruit trees, water fixtures, and low shrubbery can contribute to any sort of wild animal coming onto a person’s property, said Hoffman.

Hoffman also said that the mountain lion could have been there as it tries to find new territory.

“It may be a young cat that maybe a mom had banished from the territory, and it might be out there trying to find its own territory,” said Hoffman. “Mountains lions tend to stay with mom for about a year and a half.”

Mountain lions have been suspected in pet attacks in the past. For residents in Sand Canyon and areas of Santa Clarita bordering on natural areas, the California Department of  Fish and Wildlife offers several tips on living in close proximity with wild animals:

  • Don’t hike alone. Go in groups, with adults supervising children.
  • Keep children close. Observations of captured wild mountain lions reveal that the animals seem especially drawn to children. Keep children within sight at all times.
  • Do not approach a mountain lion. Most mountain lions will try to avoid a confrontation. Give them a way to escape.
  • Do not run from a mountain lion. Running may stimulate a mountain lion’s instinct to chase. Instead, stand and face the animal. Make eye contact. Pick up small children if possible so they don’t panic and run. Although it may be awkward, pick them up without bending over or turning away from the mountain lion.
  • Do not crouch down or bend over. In Nepal, a researcher studying tigers and leopards watched the big cats kill cattle and domestic water buffalo while ignoring humans standing nearby. He surmised that a human standing up is just not the right shape for a cat’s prey. On the other hand, a person squatting or bending over looks a lot like a four-legged prey animal. Avoid squatting, crouching or bending over in the presence of a mountain lion.
  • Try to appear larger. Raise your arms; open your jacket if you are wearing one; pick up small children; throw stones, branches or whatever you can reach without crouching or turning your back; wave your arm slowly and speak firmly in a loud voice. The idea is to convince the mountain lion that you are not prey and that you may be a danger to it.

Mountain Lion Sighted Near Sand Canyon Home

About Michael Brown

Michael Brown has lived in Santa Clarita his whole life. Graduating from Saugus High School in 2016, he continued to stay local by attending The Master’s University, where he achieved a Bachelor's Degree in Communication. Michael joined KHTS in January of 2018 as a news intern, and has since gone on to become the News Director for the KHTS Newsroom. Since joining KHTS, Michael has covered many breaking news stories (both on scene and on air), interviewed dozens of prominent state and federal political figures, and interacted with hundreds of residents from Santa Clarita. When he is not working, Michael enjoys spending time with his family, as well as reading any comic book he can get his hands on.