PREDATORS -- A young female cougar was shot and killed as it attacked a goat on the porch of a home near Elk, Washington last week.

The cougar, a kitten of the year still showing spots, was able to kill the goat shortly after midnight on Wednesday morning before the homeowner got a firearm and shot it.  The homeowner reported the incident and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife officer Severin Erickson responded.

While a cougar videoed trotting through a North Spokane parking lot last week was described as "rare" by  Fish and Wildlife officials, Erickson said several cougars a year in Pend Oreille County find their way into residents' yards.

"A lot of times nothing happens, but I get reports of them chasing a dog through the yard, or being up on a porch or lying in the grass of the yard," he said.

"In this case it was a very young cat, very thin, just 30-40 pounds, and in poor condition.  Other litter mates may have been in the area."