Police kill mountain lion found at Rapid City home

A mountain lion has been put down after injuring a family pet in Rapid City.

The Rapid City Journal reports ( http://bit.ly/LJGUou) that police called to the residence Saturday morning found the lion hiding in a machine shed.

A state Game Fish & Parks officer made the decision to put down the 1-year-old, female cat, and a police officer shot it with a rifle, police said.

The residents were working in the shed about 9:45 a.m. when their dog started making noise about something in the back of the building, police said. The owners found the “very thin” mountain lion in the shed and called law enforcement.

The cat swiped at the family’s dog, causing minor injuries to the animal, police said.

The lion was the second cougar shot by Rapid City Police in eight days. The first was a 2-year-old, 84-pound female reported by a motorist who saw it crossing a street shortly after midnight on June 15.

Police shot the cat in a parking lot after getting authorization from the Department of Game, Fish & Parks.

The department’s policy is to remove lions that have killed pets or livestock or show behavior that could pose threats to human safety. That behavior includes migrating into populated areas.

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Information from: Rapid City Journal, http://www.rapidcityjournal.com