A family had an unexpected brush with the wild when a mountain lion slipped into their home through an open front door. The close call, caught on their doorbell security camera, is a reminder of how human expansion into natural habitats is increasing the chances of such encounters.
What happened?
A People report shared that James Tenney was in the kitchen of his mother’s La Verne home when he felt his spidey sense begin tingling.
“Out of the corner of my eye, I hear and see and feel the large presence,” Tenney told reporters.
That presence happened to be a wild cougar who had snuck into the house after walking right up the driveway.
“We locked eyes for a moment, and I knew it was a lion.” The animal fled almost immediately, tearing through the back door screen, falling in the pool, popping a pool float, and finally leaping over the fence to get the heck out of dodge.
Fortunately, no one — not even the family dog, Bandit — was hurt, but Tenney said he shared the footage to warn neighbors and keep kids in the area safe.
Why is this concerning?
La Verne is a suburban, modern neighborhood — hardly somewhere you might expect to see a cougar walking around. Encounters like this one highlight how expanding communities are closing the distance between people and wild habitats. As development spreads into foothill and forested areas, mountain lions and other predators are left with fewer resources and less space.
Experts also say that warmer temperatures, longer droughts, and other environmental pressures can push wildlife into human neighborhoods in search of food and water.
Incidents like the La Verne sighting may seem rare, but they’re becoming more common — from bears raiding neighborhood garbage cans to alligators dipping in backyard pools. According to conservation researchers, increasing human-wildlife interactions often stem from habitat loss and resource shortages — and these situations pose risks to both people and animals.
What’s being done about it?
Authorities typically advise residents in mountain lion country to keep doors secured, supervise pets outdoors, and report sightings to wildlife officials. Conservation organizations are also pushing for more habitat protection and wildlife corridors — areas of land that allow animals to safely move between natural territories — to prevent encounters from escalating into conflict.
Protecting natural spaces and maintaining healthy ecosystems can reduce dangerous encounters while helping species such as mountain lions to thrive where they belong: in the wild.
Tenney, for his part, says his priority was keeping his dog safe and alerting his neighbors: “There were lots of kids running around that day … so we wanted to make sure we had that footage and alert the community.”
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