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A mountain lion that seemed “agitated” by the presence of new neighbors has aroused concerns in the Penn Valley area.
Mike Earhart had just settled in shortly after midnight Saturday when his wife, Martha Earhart, heard a loud “hissing noise and low growl” from outside, close by, Martha Earhart said Monday.
The couple had moved into their home on the 14000 block of Logan Hills Road, off Long Valley Road south of Highway 20, just two weeks before with their three small children, dog and two cats. Their house had been empty for months before that, and their property abuts a 50-acre parcel and a 100-acre parcel, Martha Earhart said.
They had recently cleared about 3 acres of brush from around the house.
Earhart heard the hissing and growling again, and ran to check on the children while her husband shined a floodlight outside toward the noise.
About 30 feet from the side of the house where their bedroom window looks out and a sliding glass door was open to the screen to let in the cool night air, a cougar was pacing on a rise at about roof level with the house, Earhart said.
“I'm born and raised here,” said Earhart, who grew up in southern Nevada County and previously lived in Alta Sierra. “I've never seen one up close like this, and never had one at my back door.”
They could “see his rear legs and his tail twitching” and the shadowy animal's eyes glowing just beyond the reach of the light, she added. “He was walking back and forth for about five minutes, back and forth, growling and hissing at us.”
Neighbors later told her they had seen a mountain lion in the area about four years ago, Earhart said. A few days before, she had taken the dog for a walk at 2 a.m. when she had heard rustling noises and had the clear sensation of being watched; she wondered Monday whether it had been that big cat.
“This cougar is not intimidated,” Earhart added. “Normally, they'll sit quietly and look on, but this thing was very agitated with our presence.”
The Earharts have plans to make their yard safe for their children, ages 3 to 6, and have contacted a trapper to make their property “as unappealing as possible so it won't want to hang around,” Earhart said.
An adult mountain lion can roam a range of more than 100 miles, and they are seen each year in western Nevada County. While they normally are shy and attacks on humans are rare, a cougar was spotted near Grass Valley's Memorial Park in mid-June.
Small children and pets should never be left outside unattended in mountain lion country, the California Department of Fish and Game warns.
For online information about cougars, visit www.dfg.ca.gov/keepmewild/lion.html, or www. Mountain Lion.org.
Mike Earhart had just settled in shortly after midnight Saturday when his wife, Martha Earhart, heard a loud “hissing noise and low growl” from outside, close by, Martha Earhart said Monday.
The couple had moved into their home on the 14000 block of Logan Hills Road, off Long Valley Road south of Highway 20, just two weeks before with their three small children, dog and two cats. Their house had been empty for months before that, and their property abuts a 50-acre parcel and a 100-acre parcel, Martha Earhart said.
They had recently cleared about 3 acres of brush from around the house.
Earhart heard the hissing and growling again, and ran to check on the children while her husband shined a floodlight outside toward the noise.
About 30 feet from the side of the house where their bedroom window looks out and a sliding glass door was open to the screen to let in the cool night air, a cougar was pacing on a rise at about roof level with the house, Earhart said.
“I'm born and raised here,” said Earhart, who grew up in southern Nevada County and previously lived in Alta Sierra. “I've never seen one up close like this, and never had one at my back door.”
They could “see his rear legs and his tail twitching” and the shadowy animal's eyes glowing just beyond the reach of the light, she added. “He was walking back and forth for about five minutes, back and forth, growling and hissing at us.”
Neighbors later told her they had seen a mountain lion in the area about four years ago, Earhart said. A few days before, she had taken the dog for a walk at 2 a.m. when she had heard rustling noises and had the clear sensation of being watched; she wondered Monday whether it had been that big cat.
“This cougar is not intimidated,” Earhart added. “Normally, they'll sit quietly and look on, but this thing was very agitated with our presence.”
The Earharts have plans to make their yard safe for their children, ages 3 to 6, and have contacted a trapper to make their property “as unappealing as possible so it won't want to hang around,” Earhart said.
An adult mountain lion can roam a range of more than 100 miles, and they are seen each year in western Nevada County. While they normally are shy and attacks on humans are rare, a cougar was spotted near Grass Valley's Memorial Park in mid-June.
Small children and pets should never be left outside unattended in mountain lion country, the California Department of Fish and Game warns.
For online information about cougars, visit www.dfg.ca.gov/keepmewild/lion.html, or www. Mountain Lion.org.
