Lions eat miniature horse

A pair of mountain lions killed and

partially ate a miniature horse near a residence on Blanchard Lake

Road outside Whitefish.

The incident happened Dec. 8. After the

lions killed the 31-inch-tall horse, they dragged it away, ate part

of it and cached the rest.

Lion specialist Erik Wenum of Montana

Fish Wildlife and Parks set a trap near the carcass and caught a

135-pound, 5-year-old lion the next day. The male was

euthanized.

At the time, Wenum wasn’t sure if one

lion or two lions were the culprit, but later that same afternoon

the landowner saw another lion feeding on the carcass. The

landowner called Wenum who then authorized the man to shoot the

lion.

That lion was a 110-pound female. The

two were likely a breeding pair. Wenum said the lions weren’t far

from the family’s home and FWP has a “zero tolerance” policy for

lions near houses.

He said the area was good lion habitat.

Lions typically don’t prey on horses. In his experience, he’s dealt

with more lions that have been killed by horses or mules than the

other way around.

Adult horses and mules are good at

fending for themselves.

The horses are generally injured in the

encounter when they run into a fence.

But a miniature horse is much smaller

prey and lions will kill and eat llamas, goats and other small pets

like dogs and cats.

Residents living in lion habitat should

try to put the animals in a barn at night if possible to ensure

their protection. People have also moved into areas like Many

Lakes, Rhodes Draw and McMannamy Draw, which are excellent winter

deer winter range.

With deer around homes, lions are bound

to follow their prey, Wenum noted.

This winter in Glacier National Park,

where lions are largely protected, lion tracks have been seen

regularly in the Apgar and West Glacier areas, which is also winter

range for deer.

Lion attacks on humans are exceedingly

rare. Most lions are secretive, solitary creatures and rarely

seen.