SANTA CRUZ — More than a week after a too-skinny mountain lion cub took up residence beneath one Santa Cruz Mountains resident’s deck patio furniture, she and several thousand strangers are keeping close virtual tabs on “Holly’s” recovery.
On a frosty-cold Sunday morning a week before Christmas, Judy Sambrailo’s American bulldog alerted the family to an unusual guest. Crouched on the back patio of the family’s home, the approximately 3- to 4-month-old cub appeared to have been tucked away for safekeeping by its parent. After reaching out to the nonprofit Native Animal Rescue of Santa Cruz County for help, the family immediately was referred to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Kevin Foster, a Boulder Creek resident who has volunteered as a wildlife rescuer with Native Animal Rescue for the past six years, said it is not uncommon for the agency to be the first stop for locals when it comes to wildlife encounters. Large animals such as mountain lions, however, are not under the nonprofit’s purview.
“Our first directive was to keep your pets and your kids, stay inside and leave it be and make it quiet, hoping that mom will come and get it,” Foster said.
Happy HOLLY-days for this rescued mountain lion cub, who continues to improve!
Holly is already showing us a calm but curious demeanor. She has a growing appetite too 🙂
The Christmas spirit is strong in this one — we hope you are all feeling loved and cared for today as well! pic.twitter.com/SuC19mNA2a
— Oakland Zoo (@oakzoo) December 25, 2022
Sambrailo, who lives in the mountains above the Santa Cruz-Soquel area, said she immediately felt connected to the “adorable” young cub.
“We don’t know what happened to the mom. Unfortunately, she didn’t come back. That would have been the best-case scenario, definitely,” Sambrailo said. “But we think maybe it could sense the water was here, the pond, and needed water. I think it came to the pond and then found the closest place it could hide.”
By Monday morning, however, there was no sign of the mother and the cub remained nearby, Sambrailo said. While looking outside, she saw that the cub had made its way over to a nearby small pond to get a drink of water. Sambrailo grabbed her long-lens camera and snapped some shots from a safe distance, documenting the cub’s emaciated frame, and sent them over to a wildlife warden.
“That’s when they said, OK, we need to come and rescue it,” Sambrailo said.
The cub was whisked away to the Oakland Zoo, whose wildlife veterinarians have taken in five mountain lions this year, alone, according to the zoo’s response on Twitter to community questions Thursday. The zoo’s updates on Holly have garnered hundreds of thousands of views, likes, comments and reposts on Facebook and Twitter.
The newly arrived cub — dubbed Holly in honor of the holidays — was in critically ill condition, Oakland vets determined. Holly was warmed and treated immediately with fluids, vitamins and medication, according to the zoo. By Tuesday, Holly’s bloodwork had improved slightly. On Wednesday, Holly was eating and described as feisty, with the veterinarians remaining “cautiously optimistic” about the cub’s recovery. As of the zoo’s most recent social media post Friday, Holly continued to respond positively to treatment, though “a long road ahead” remained.
In the case of severely sick or young animals such as Holly, the zoo cares for the animals “until they recover enough to find suitable forever homes.” Sambrailo said she and her family hope one day to meet up with the cub again.
While mountain lions typically pose little threat to humans and generally avoid any human interaction, members of the public are reminded that mountain lions are wild animals and their behavior may be unpredictable, as with any wildlife, according to Fish and Wildlife. When encountering a mountain lion, people should never approach the animal nor run away from it, and always provide the mountain lion with an escape route, officials recommend. Report large wildlife encounters online at apps.wildlife.ca.gov/wir or contact Native Animal Rescue at 831-462-0726.
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