A star athlete like Matthew Stafford can afford to take a call to stay away from the city, seeking better space, air quality, nature and all other finer perks. However, along with these gifts, living on the outskirts would also usher in some unexpected guests from time to time. The latest visitor to Matthew and Kelly Stafford’s neighborhood in Hidden Hills, California, was a mountain lion.
Advertisement
What added to Kelly‘s fear was the lack of available protective measures against what could have been a threat to safety.
As soon as the big cat was spotted, the neighborhood went into a lockdown. She decided to call up Animal Control, but it was of no help. The real shocker came when the school mailed Kelly to say that the premises were locked down due to a mountain lion entering the area, she narrated in the latest episode of The Morning After.
Her horror multiplied when she was informed that mountain lions are a common occurrence in the area. The school’s failure to train kids or parents to handle such situations irked Kelly further. She couldn’t believe that her children’s lives were at risk and that it was being taken so lightly.
“I mean we’re just like ‘Woo, Mountain lion in the backyard, this is so cool… What the fu*k? No, it’s not [cool]. This is dangerous. These are my kids’ lives,” said Kelly.
Her frustration also stemmed from the fact that the authorities had also played a role in the mountain lions roaming in their neighbourhood.
According to Kelly’s information, the authorities had built a bridge between two mountain ranges. The mountain lions have been endangered due to repeated inbreeding and the bridge was an initiative to help them travel to the other side where they can breed and sustain healthy populations.
The animals, clearly, have been using the bridge to venture into human settlements. Kelly noted sarcastically that if this continues, humans in her neighborhood may get endangered.
“I was like ‘Oh fantastic, save the mountain lions, let’s just bring them all over here so our kids and our dogs and our pets and our horses and myself can be in danger… We’re going to be endangered,” she said.
The kids and Kelly are safe for now. They are hoping that the authorities would figure out a way to ensure the animals cross over between the mountains without venturing into areas where humans live.
