- Home
- News
- Opinion
- Letters
- Sports
- Prospecting
- Essentials
- Obituaries
- Real Estate
- Comics
- Gallery
- Classifieds
- Advertisers
- Coupons
- Contact Us
Share Article
624
455624455
RALPH GERKEN points to an area on his property where a Cougar ate one of his goats Tuesday September 18. Democrat photo by Pat Dollins
Four mountain lions were killed in Rescue last month after they killed and ate a goat.
The goat was part of a small herd owned by Ralph Gerken and his family. The Gerkens own the historic Zentgraf House along with 200 acres off of Deer Valley Road.
Gerken said he spotted a mountain lion on the evening of Aug. 15 and took a shot at it.
“The next morning I went out to feed the goats and all but one came walking up the road. I saw the big cat prints and followed them and found what was left of one of my goats,” he said.
Gerken said the mountain lion must have dragged the 200-pound corpse of the goat about 400 feet down the hill, under a fence, and then down to the creek. “You can see where the cat dragged the goat across the road,” he said pointing to the marks leading down to the creek.” The remains of the goat were still visible last week.
Gerken said he started calling different agencies about what to do about the mountain lion. According to Wildlife Program Supervisor with the California Department of Fish and Game Jason Holley, “Fish and Game writes the permits to take certain animals, when appropriate. Then, USDA trappers or another agent of the permit holder does the actual ‘taking’ of said animal.”
On the morning after the goat was found dead, John Chandler, who is a warden with the USDA, came out with several dogs, tracked the four mountain lions and killed them.
“It took a couple of hours to track and kill them,” said Gerken.
The animals killed were a mother and her three cubs. The cubs were judged to be about 18 months old and weighed 50 to 70 pounds each.
Gerken said they had evidently been living in the area for a while judging by a nearby site he found with matted grass and the remains of a deer.
“I haven’t seen any mountain lions since the others were killed, although I have found bear droppings,” he said.
The goats were brought in by Gerken to help clear the underbrush on the property. He also has a donkey and hot wire fencing to help keep the mountain lions away.
Gerken said the adult mountain lion must have been trapped and relocated previously because she was tagged. “The game warden took the body of the adult lion away and left the bodies of the cubs behind on the property,” he said.
When asked why the mother and cubs weren’t relocated instead of killed, the Fish and Game supervisor said that relocating the animals might cause a disruption to animals already living in the new area. However that didn’t explain why the adult had previously been moved given that she was already tagged.
He also stated that “when a lion has caused actual and verifiable property damage (such as killing livestock), the law states that we must issue a depredation permit when requested.”
According to state law, mountain lions cannot be killed without a permit and permits are only issued under certain circumstances. The most current statistics kept by the California Department of Fish and Game show that there were 42 permitted kills in the state in 2009. Of those 42, two mountain lions were killed in El Dorado County.
In the meantime, Gerken is ready to protect his herd of goats. “If they stay away, I’ll leave them alone,” he said. “But I’m ready for them now. I bought a .270 (caliber rifle).”
Contact Dawn Hodson at 530-344-5071 or dhodson@mtdemocrat.net. Follow @DHodsonMtDemo on Twitter.
The Mountain Democrat does not necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post. Read our full policy
Terri KlineSeptember 24, 2012 - 6:56 am
I am appalled that the mother mountain lion and her three cubs were hunted and killed by our local Fish and Game warden because they ate a weedeater!!!!!!!!!
Ken SteersSeptember 24, 2012 - 8:39 am
Not "a weed eater" but Mr Gerken's "weed eater". The goat is private property. If a neighbor's dog would have done the same thing the law states that the property owner can shoot on site. It appears that the cats had no respect for the law.
RyanSeptember 24, 2012 - 8:44 am
Killing a mother an her cubs when the goat is on the land the mountain lion is naturalized to is wrong. This warden and the land owner made a decision that was lacking thorough consideration. This land owner should have never been issued a permit. The wardens decision to kill the mom and cubs should be investigated.
Natalie StoppaniSeptember 24, 2012 - 8:59 am
It's always terrible when wildlife has to suffer the consequences of a growing human population. What people fail to realize, is the Mountain Lion population is growing also which restricts the ability for Fish and Game to relocate the animals. As the daughter of a retired game warden I'm well aware of the department's downfalls, however preservation of wildlife is NOT one of those downfalls. These cats were shot because they posed a threat to human and animal population.
Ken SteersSeptember 24, 2012 - 1:32 pm
The weed eating goat was on it's owners land. The mommy mountain lion and her cutie babies MURDERED the poor goat in cold blood. Ryan and Terri, why no love for the mommy goat? Her son Billy is now an orphan because of this murder. Maybe you could adopt the poor kid and raise him as one of your own?
Dave in KelseySeptember 24, 2012 - 3:56 pm
I am a hunter but this story makes me sick. You can claim private property all you want. We live in their neighborhood. They didn't kill a child/human. They killed and ate another animal and in my opinion should have had better protection. And the very beining of the article states he took a shot at the cat? For what? Tresspassing? Give me a break.
REWSeptember 24, 2012 - 4:44 pm
We need to use caution eliminating other passengers on the planet Mother Earth. When all mans large predators (here to keep things in balance) are gone, she may bring back a pesky flea or mosquito to keep things in check. Just a thought...
leeSeptember 24, 2012 - 5:34 pm
Humans weren't just dropped on the earth and forced to fend for them selves. We are the basically same wildlife that mountain lions are, we are animals to a point, just more evolved. We just happen to be at the top of the food chain. If it wasn't a goat but instead your child or your spouse that was killed you would be demanding it be killed. All you liberals that say man is the big enemy of earth, get over it, we were put on this planet just like all the other creatures.
West End CynicSeptember 24, 2012 - 6:24 pm
Since hunting ML was banned in CA, their population has probably doubled, however it is difficult for biologists to perform an accurate census. We are going to see an increase in attacks by ML on domestic animals and people. How many people attacks will it take?
BigWhiteDogSeptember 24, 2012 - 6:29 pm
This is why you use Livestock Guardian dogs and not Donkeys. Both the goats and Mt Lions would still be alive.
CatherineSeptember 24, 2012 - 6:32 pm
I'd appreciate knowing what kind of fencing was protecting the goats, so I can be sure to do better if I bring some on my land. I'd heard you need 8' of chain link to prevent coyote or ML poaching. If they were loose on 200 acres with minimal fencing, then what can we expect?
foothillpersonSeptember 24, 2012 - 7:27 pm
Depressing story. Didn't the owner of the goats realize there are mountain lions in this area? There are mountain lions, bobcats and coyotes (not to mention neighbors' dogs) where I live - and there is no way I would leave goats out at night unattended. It's like putting out cat food for the mountain lions. I also wouldn't let a small child play outside unsupervised - but I wouldn't do that in a city either for different reasons.
REWSeptember 24, 2012 - 7:28 pm
Not a Liberal Welcome to GODS spaceship Mother Earth: A ship so ingeniously designed that humans never had a clue that we were on one. The spinning planet spaceship Earth is flying through the universe at a million miles per hour, with a really good water and food source for all. Mother Earth gives all passengers a set of instructions called instincts. All the passengers but one follows these rules. Humans have misplaced their internal handbook. Important rules like don't poison the water, soil or air, overuse resources, deforest massive areas, overpopulate or use dangerous genetically modified organisms and abuse domestic livestock for no other reason than to profit. Mother Earth has from time to time, decided some passengers have finished their flight. Only humans continue to force other passengers to leave because we ignore the handbook, Mother Earth and the other passengers are being very kind to us. We see everywhere in the world there are ordinary people willing to confront despair, power, and incalculable odds in order to restore some semblance of grace, justice, and beauty to this world. There are many groups and organizations who are working on the most salient issues of our day: poverty, deforestation, peace, water, hunger, conservation, human rights, and more. Possibly the largest movement the world has ever seen. Rather than control, it seeks connection. Rather than dominance, it strives to disperse the concentrations of power limiting the masses from purpose. The world is in our hearts. Life creates the conditions that are conducive to life. We should think of no better motto for a future life and global economy. We have abandoned homes without people and abandoned people without homes. We have failed lawyers advising failed bankers advising failed regulators and Lobbyists advising corrupt politicians on how to save failed assets. We are the only species on the planet without full employment. Every bacteria, insect, plant and animal on the planet has a purpose, yet some humans do not. We have a global economy that tells us that it is cheaper to destroy Earth in real time rather than renew, restore, and sustain it. Humans print currency to bail out financial institutions but unfortunately humans can't print life to bail out a planet. Currently we are stealing the future, selling it in the present, and calling it gross domestic product and leaving the cost to our offspring .We can easily have an economy that is based on healing the future instead of stealing it. We either create assets for the future or take the assets of the future. One is called restoration and the other exploitation. And whenever we exploit the Earth we exploit people and this causes untold suffering. Life on this planet should not be a way to get rich, but a way to be rich in life. Human greed by the few, for far too long has caused senseless suffering to the many. GOD and Mother Earth own and pilot the Spaceship Earth. Our fare is being paid by ordinary compassionate people from all the races and religions of the world. With GODS grace, hopefully their efforts will continue to be enough... Suppose the age of the universe was condensed 14 billion years since the Big Bang: Into 14 years for comparison. The Earth has existed for 5 years. It has at times been completely covered with lava, water and ice. Complex creatures developed just 7 months ago. Dinosaurs became extinct only 3 weeks ago Entire existence of humans, depending on theories, the last 3 minutes. Time since the industrial revolution (Modern man) 6 seconds. Humans are not as special as we would like to think. The planet Mother Earth will continue with extreme prejudice towards any given passenger, as required. Just a thought…..
Tom JohnsonSeptember 24, 2012 - 11:31 pm
There are more wholesome ways of dealing with one's repressed homosexuality than killing large predators. Not naming names.
BigWhiteDogSeptember 25, 2012 - 8:58 am
Catherine, they have 4'ft sheep fencing which can't keep any predator out, nor can it (generally)keep Livestock Guardian dogs in. We use 6ft no climb which keeps the dogs and coyotes out, our working dogs in, but bears and Mt Lions, if hungry enough, can go over it. 8ft chain link is a completely custom order and extremely expensive. A working pair of guardian dogs is a lot cheaper. check out www.LGD.org for more info
Jackie WoodSeptember 25, 2012 - 9:42 am
I know this has been a problem for the owner of the goat. But shooting a mother cougar and her cubs is NOT the way to deal with this. Prevention in the form of Livestock Guardian Dogs are the key. I live in the Mark Twain National Forest with cougars and bear, coyote and a rare wolf. I've not lost a goat in the 3 years we have lived here! And by the way, in reference to Ken's remark. I dont think the cats can read!
Ken SteersSeptember 25, 2012 - 9:06 pm
Can we all stop for a minute and ask ourselves what about the poor goat? She's not just a weed eater. How are her kids? 8 ft chain link is too cost prohibitive for a farmer. Not to mention it blocks the cohabitation of other natures creatures from enjoying the land. What did the deer or raccoon or fox do to the goat? Why should they suffer? Mountain lions owe goat everywhere an apology. I fear if they don't the middle east goats will riot and burn embassies. We nee to understand and appreciate our goat brothers. Some of you are so insensitive.
GreenletSeptember 26, 2012 - 7:30 am
Animals have rights, I totally agree but i am also of the view that whenever rights of human beings and animals come in contact then by virtue of human supremacy animal rights must be sidelined and in this case i think that the warden did the right thing.Greenlet
Thomas StewartSeptember 27, 2012 - 5:11 pm
A mountain lion will stalk its prey for up to two weeks before it attacks.Remember the lady that was killed by a mountain lion about eight years ago in the Auburn area on a hiking trail.Remember this mountain lion was already tagged and quite possibly already a problem predator.If a mountain lion will attack live stock it will also attack a un-suspecting human under perfect circumstances.Easier said then done to relocate problem animals.Good for you Mr. Gerken a trying to protect your family,livestock and property
thomas StewartSeptember 27, 2012 - 5:16 pm
In regards to REW's comments....great to take up a whole page and say absolutely nothing in the process...
Susan McKownOctober 02, 2012 - 12:47 pm
A mother lion trying to feed her babies. The mother and the cubs are shot dead for eating a goat? Sheer arrogance and a love to KIll anything moving is getting to prevalent. Who ordered this killing? I want to picket that office.The goat owner too. Instant Karma.