The mountain lion that killed a Boulder couple’s leashed Cavachon dog on July 25 was relocated on Friday evening.
One week after , Bodhi, was attacked, the same mountain lion that had evaded capture last weekend was caught, tagged and relocated, according to a .
The lion was caught in the same neighborhood where it had attacked the Appels’ pet, Boulder police spokesperson Dionne Waugh said.
Boulder police, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, and Boulder Open Space & Mountain Parks captured the lion.
The area where the mountain lion was released was not disclosed, per Boulder police practice, said Waugh.
It is unclear whether the lion returned to where it had killed Bodhi when it was captured. When authorities first started searching for the animal, they discovered a food cache where the cat had buried Bodhi. Mountain lions often save their kills in a cache to eat over time, according to Kara Van Hoose, CPW’s Northeast Region public information officer.
The dog’s body was found and returned to the Appels shortly after authorities first responded to the attack last weekend.
Bodhi was killed by the mountain lion about 9 p.m. July 25 during his last walk of the day about six houses from the Appels’ home. The couple had their small, white dog leashed.
Within “two seconds,” Bodhi was dead, Taulere said. It happened so fast, shocking the couple who has lived in Boulder since 1984.
“It was just, like, out of nowhere,” Taulere said.
The following afternoon, Boulder Animal Protection, the city’s Open Space & Mountain Parks Department, and Colorado Parks and Wildlife responded. Though the agencies tried to capture the cat, they were initially unsuccessful.
Van Hoose said that mountain lions are common in Boulder. She recommended that people avoid taking pets out at night when possible, use as much light as possible, keep dogs on-leash when outside and make noise before letting a pet into the yard after dark.
Mountain lions are solitary creatures, she said, and tend to lurk in the dark, seeking out easy meals when they can.
