Mountain Lion Euthanized After Walking Into Lobby Of Vail Condo Building
VAIL, Colo. (CBS4) - Colorado Parks and Wildlife made the tough decision to euthanize a mountain lion over the weekend after it demonstrated unusual behavior and came into the lobby of a condominium property in the mountains. It happened on Saturday in the Lionshead village area in Vail and surveillance cameras captured images of the animal inside.
The animal had been spotted near several resort properties two different times. In the second sighting, it entered the lobby and Vail police wrote in a Tuesday Facebook post that "officers were able to confine it to a secure area of the hotel in cooperation with property management." CPW was called in and they tranquilized the mountain lion.
Police said CPW then determined the animal needed to be euthanized because it was "severely emaciated and in poor condition, which likely contributed to its desire to be in close proximity to humans."
Mountain lions live in the Eagle County area but are rarely sighted by humans, and usually they are elusive and don't come near populated areas.
Additional Resources
Vail police released the following information about any incident involving wild animals:
Wildlife sightings in the Town of Vail are encouraged to be reported to the Vail Public Safety Communications Center via the non-emergency number, 970-479-2200.
Wildlife that poses a threat to humans, livestock or domestic animals should be reported by calling 911.