How to prevent a mountain lion attack
Understanding how mountain lion attacks occur
This is an interesting subject because there are such similarities with most attacks but it is difficult to get the correct information because there are varying agendas. Since this website is about education, I'll be giving you the best advice based on all previous incidents as well as my encounters with mountain lions. If you were to read info on a hunting website, you will definitely NOT be getting the correct info as hunting websites are typically looking to make these animals sound scarier and most hunters seem to be terrified of the wilderness for some odd reason. These false statements will mention that mountain lions stalk humans, eat humans, and are overpopulating, of course actual studies know that none of those things are true.
Reasons mountain lions attack
There can be several reasons for attacks on humans, none of which include for food. Mountain lions absolutely do not see humans as a food source, it's never happened where a mountain lion killed and ate a human. There are 1 or 2 cases where a human body was found and appeared to be partially eaten by a possible mountain lion (unconfirmed) but each case was confirmed that the human was killed by other means and was then scavenged.
Based on available information from all mountain lion attacks on humans in California (which is almost exactly the same as in other states), attacks occur for three reasons:
1 - When a human is by themself and crouched down in a vulnerable position, a mountain lion might mistake the human as a food source and will see an opportunity. This is what happened with the only fatality in Orange County (Mark Reynolds) as he was crouched down fixing his bike chain while by himself. It was thought that this mountain lion likely has some sort of neurological disorder and soon after, went after a lady on a mountain bike as well. While the lady was not doing anything wrong, it's likely that the mountain lion was defending his kill and the lady was unknowingly nearby the original attack site. If Mark had another mountain biker with him standing up while he was fixing his chain, it is very unlikely that this attack would have occurred. This is likely because there were so many people in Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park that day and the mountain lion chose him because he was the only one in that vulnerable position. Because of his unfortunate circumstance, we can learn from it about what not to do.
2 - Small children separated from their group/family might peak the curiosity of a mountain lion especially since children often might mimic the behavior of an animal as they flail around or run. Looking at previous attacks, mountain lions really do not like to attack full grown adults that are out hiking or mountain biking but when parents are irresponsible and let their children run ahead, it is putting the child's life at risk. This is proven by several instances of mountain lions attacking or investigating children in California especially several instances in recent years in Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park. Each of these instances resulted in minor injuries in the child but the death of the mountain lion. This is why humans need to be responsible with their children because it's not only putting their child's life in danger but it's also endangering the lives of the animals that are just out trying to survive.
3 - When a mountain lion mother has kittens, she will defend her kittens just as most animals would and as us humans would. It is completely understandable that a mountain lion would do what she had to do in order to keep her kittens safe. If a human gets too close to a mountain lions kittens, it is expected that you will see defensive displays to get you away. You might not even know that there are kittens hiding in nearby bushes but to the protective mother, she just knows that you're too close. When know this is the case in several instances including one in Utah where a hiker stumbled upon mountain lion kittens and got video of the mother chasing the hiker away. It was very obvious that she did not want to attack the hiker at all but displayed very aggressive moves to scare the intruder back to a safe distance.
How to prevent an attack
Mountain lions are ambush predators, if they wanted to attack you, you wouldn't see them until it was too late. Most scenarios occur when a human and mountain lion just happen to cross paths, this happens much more often in populated areas like in Southern California where hundreds of thousands of people venture into the wilderness areas every day, into the home of mountain lions. Knowing that you are in their home and having respect for them should be the number one thing in your mind. You need to understand that they can kill a human easily but typically will choose to walk away.
In the very rare scenario that a mountain lion is facing you and acting aggressive, you need to take control of the situation by standing your ground and showing the animal how big and tough you are. We can go to the hospital if we can get injured, mountain lions can't so if they think they might get injured by attacking you, they will not do it. They will not risk getting injured in the wild because ultimately that will be a death sentence for them since they can't get help like we can. If the situation doesn't diffuse, you can back away slowly while facing the mountain lion. If the mountain lion has kittens nearby, this would likely help diffuse that altercation. NEVER RUN OR CROUCH DOWN especially to grab rocks and throw them, you do not want to agitate the mountain lion even more. You simply want to diffuse the situation and show the mountain lion that you're the one in control and that you have the ability to do damage to them. You have to put on a front. Each scenario is different so you will have to use your best judgement with that in mind. You may have to shout/scream at the mountain lion as well, this doubles to help bring attention from other hikers who can come over to help you.
When venturing in the home of mountain lions, it is very smart to carry bear spray which can be purchased at any REI. This is a great option to diffuse a situation if there is a standoff and ensures the safety of the animal and yourself as it will allow you enough time to get out of there before the animal can see again, it's a temporary blinding spray which works on any animal that uses their vision to get around. There's no need to carry a gun because you should be educated on dealing with these situations and you are in their home where they are just trying to live.
How long does it take for a mountain lion to eat?
Mountain lions typically do not eat right after they make a kill. They need time to make sure their surroundings are clear and safe from other predators and they need to calm down after using so much energy. Depending on the size of the prey, it can take a mountain lion 1 night to 1 week to eat their prey. If they predate on something small like a fox, it would likely just be 1-2 nights. If they predate on a large deer, it can easily take a week. They will typically bury their kill to hide it and come return to it each night.
Do mountain lions kill for sport?
Absolutely not! It simply wouldn't be possible for them to just kill for fun or sport because they have to survive. If a mountain lion was just going around killing everything for fun and not eating then it wouldn't be able to survive. A mountain lions success rate for hunting is roughly 15% which can vary slightly depending on what part of the country they're in as well as what prey, altitude, and terrain. This means most of the time, they're unsuccessful in their predations so when they do actually make a kill, they have to eat it because they've wasted so much energy just to get that one kill.
Mountain lions typically make their kills in places where humans are not at so we don't see them do this. The only times people really see mountain lion predations is when they kill livestock because humans are nearby to see the dead animals afterwards. Because of this, people who are not knowledgeable on this subject might think that there's a mountain lion that's killing for sport, not realizing that they don't eat right after they make a kill. Since mountain lions typically come back the next night to feed and usually by that time, humans will have moved the deceased livestock, those who are uneducated about them will think that they're killing for sport when in reality, they're harming the mountain lion by teaching them to predate on livestock by leaving them accessible and also by taking away their kill that they put so much effort into.
Do mountain lions eat pets/livestock?
Mountain lions are opportunistic and will prey on what is available. Deer, foxes, and coyotes are prey for mountain lions here in Southern California but all of those animals are very aware of their surroundings and will take evasive action to survive. Domesticated animals however, live a life where they don't have to be weary of their surroundings so they can make for easy prey if humans fail to be responsible and secure these animals. Of course there are easy methods to protect pets but humans don't always care to take appropriate measures, that is when a mountain lion will take up the opportunity to feed easily. While it's extremely rare for a mountain lion to kill a cow or horse, sheep, goats, chickens, and other small livestock make for easy prey for mountain lions. The answer is yes, mountain lions will predate on livestock but at the fault of humans being irresponsible, it is known that mountain lions do not prefer livestock though and don't do this often.