Watch dramatic rescue of two young mountain lions from reservoir that ‘probably would have drowned them’

Two young Colorado mountain lions are lucky to be alive after wildlife officials conducted a complicated rescue operation to save the yearlings from drowning.

According to messages on X, Colorado Parks and Wildlife Southwest were called after Pine River Irrigation District dam officials alerted them Friday to the animals’ presence. Dam manager Mike Canterbury was apparently about to release water from Vallecito Reservoir, northwest of Durango, when he noticed the two young mountain lions at the bottom of the spillway.

“A release of water would likely have drowned the two lions,” CPW writes. The mountain lions were on a dry part of the dam, surrounded by high concrete walls, with no chance of escape.

According to one report, Ty Smith, the district’s wildlife manager, initially wasn’t sure if he would have to put the mountain lions to sleep with a dart to extract them, but a video you can watch below reveals that he did. succeeded with a tactic that works with domestic cats. – by hanging a piece of string.

“We provided him with a rope and he hung it in front of the kittens to see if they would grab onto it and he could lift it. One of them did!”

The first mountain lion held on to the rope and was guided to safety before quickly fleeing into the woods. The second lion, however, rushed down the spillway and began pacing nervously along the water’s edge.

The footage below reveals that Smith eventually climbed the spillway and managed to interest the lion in the rope.

“As the lion was interested in the rope, CPW staff were also able to use a capture pole and together we lifted the lion over the concrete wall and quickly released it.”

After walking under a truck for a few minutes, the young lion took off in search of his brother.

Mountain Lion Safety

With warmer temperatures ahead, more and more hikers are heading to the trail and while there is a very small chance that you will encounter one in the wild, it is worth reviewing your lion’s safety before lacing up your hiking boots.

If you encounter a mountain lion in the wild, it is important not to run. Stay in front of him, back up slowly and make it look big. If the mountain lion acts aggressively, make noise and throw objects at it to deter it. Learn more in our article on what to do if you encounter a mountain lion on the trail.