Mountain lion reports made in Clinton County; horse hurt
MICHIGANTOWN, Ind. (WLFI) – Some people in Clinton County say a mountain lion was responsible for leaving their horse badly hurt.
The horse was discovered after their granddaughter came by for the horse’s daily feeding.
“It was quite the culture shock,” said Michigantown resident Pat Ferguson. “It was worse when I saw Jake and how tore up he was.”
It was just a few weeks ago when Pat Ferguson said her granddaughter went out to feed her 5-year-old horse Jake.
That’s when she found that he had been attacked.
“He had a chunk taken out of his shoulder, scratch marks all over his face, his shoulders, his rear end,” Ferguson said.
Jake was rushed to an emergency veterinarian in Sheridan and treated for his injuries.
Ferguson believes a mountain lion was responsible for the attack.
“A coyote would not do that and we have lots of coyotes and a bobcat is not big enough to jump up he’s a very large horse,” Ferguson said.
Ferguson is just glad nobody else was hurt.
“We could’ve been out here, any of us,” Ferguson said. “The granddaughter, if she’d have come 20 minutes earlier, she would’ve been in the midst of it, very scary.”
Indiana Department of Natural Resources spokesperson Marty Benson said the department has recently received several reports of mountain lion sightings throughout Clinton County.
He said there is no proof to confirm that there actually are any though.
Benson said while these sightings aren’t unheard of in Indiana, it’s unlikely that these were indeed mountain lions that were spotted.
As for Ferguson, she’s not taking any chances in the future.
“We lock them up at night, we don’t leave them out anymore at night,” Ferguson said.
Jake is doing much better and is even competing in a barrel race this weekend.