Lost Mountain Lion Strolling Through SoCal Neighborhood Captured by Officials

A lost mountain lion roaming through a Camarillo, California, neighborhood was captured on Wednesday, February 19, after eluding authorities for several hours.

Law enforcement first received reports of the wild animal at 8:42 am when it was spotted in a backyard.

Ventura County Animal Services monitored the big cat while waiting for officials from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) to arrive.

The mountain lion moved through commercial and residential areas, even leaping off rooftops, according to the Ventura County Sheriff.

Wildlife officers attempted to tranquilize it around 1 pm, but the dart missed, causing the animal to flee to another location.

Officers successfully sedated the cat on the 2500 block of Pheasant Hill Road an hour later.

Steve Gonzalez, a CDFW spokesman, said the mountain lion was a young male. Officials planned to conduct a health check and fit it with a tracking collar before releasing it back into the wild.

This footage by Edmund P Urquiza documents the chase, showing the cat dodging officers before its eventual capture. He also filmed the sedated animal being transported in a CDFW vehicle.

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office told residents to bring their pets indoors during the evening and early morning hours, and said: “Remember, these majestic creatures roam our hills, and it’s crucial to coexist peacefully.” Credit: Edmund P Urquiza via Storyful

Video Transcript

So here we are in Midtown Camarillo.

This is off our kneel, and the street is called Lomita, one block parallel to the 101 freeway and uh we’re here live on Facebook here, Midtown Camarillo, and the animal control and uh Department of Fish and Game, I believe, are uh setting up to uh tranquilize.

They don’t have the tranquilizer personnel here at the moment.

But they’re ready to tranquilize a mountain lion that last night was spotted on Weston Court.

So I think they’re gonna start moving in here.

OK, so the meeting’s over and they’re one’s gonna go one way.

They’re surrounding the back of the residence and they’re they’re gonna make sure they just entered over here so they’ll probably come past us here.

Since the mountain lion is to the right of that trash can.

Go up here.

Did you see the tail?

You just crossed the street.

They cross the street, they’re jumping over.

They’re jumping over into the next yard.

Did you see it?

Did you see across the street?

Joey?

here in the area, please your residence.

Yeah.

goes.

Wow, I got it.

I got it.

I see I OK, here we are.

This white pickup will have the mountain lion, the mountain lion in it here, folks.

Here comes.

White pickup has the mountain lion in the back.

Hopefully we can see something.

Here they go.

All right, that’s it, it’s over.