The search for the alleged Milwaukee lion continues Monday after a near miss over the weekend. The big cat has managed to evade police and DNR officials since it was reported one week ago.
Witnesses reported seeing two lions -- what appears to be a mother and a cub -- around 7:15 p.m. Saturday near 30th Street and Fairmount Avenue, according to TMJ4 in Milwaukee.
Milwaukee police attempted to surround the animal with no luck.
"Law enforcement receive very little training when it comes to dealing with a wild animal," said Brian Dorow, who teaches law enforcement at Waukesha County Technical College.
Dorow said police treat lion calls, like the "confirmed lion like sighting" this weekend, just like they would any other dangerous situation.
After the most recent sighting, armed Milwaukee police and DNR officials invaded the area, fanning out and setting up a perimeter. The search lasted into Sunday.
"In this particular situation, you can see they're trying to isolate the animal, contain it so it doesn't move to a different area," he said.
There is only one known video of the lion, which was captured in Milwaukee's Brewer's Hill neighborhood.
"You're in a very concentrated, populated, urban area, so it's not like you can take a shot, wherever. It has to be at the right location," Dorow said. "But certainly they want to get into a tree and then they can shoot up into the air and not risk hitting anything else in the immediate area."
Dorow said surrounding an animal like this that likely weighs at least a couple hundred pounds is much harder than tracking a person down.
"With animals though, they're very elusive, as soon as you get your containment your resources into that area, that animal may be a half mile down the road already because they're on the move," he said. "They're going to continue moving to the next location when they're in a stressful situation."
If you do spot the lion, do not approach the animal and call police immediately.
