DALTON GARDENS — The second Dalton Gardens resident in six weeks reported they believe a cougar killed a deer on their residential property.

Diane Link, who lives with her husband near Fourth Street and Canfield Avenue, said they found a dead deer in their yard Monday morning.

Based on the evidence - paw prints, blood, injuries and signs that the carcass had been dragged - they believe it was the work of a cougar, but did not see one.

Link said deer have been struck by vehicles near their home and staggered into their yard and died. But this was different.

"We've never had anything like that," Link said Tuesday.

She was concerned that a cougar may have traveled that far from Canfield Mountain to reach their property.

Link said the incident has created a new awareness to be alert before walking into her backyard or letting their 14-pound dog, Lolo, go outside on the land they have owned for 15 years.

"I guess I'll have to be more cautious," she said.

Another Dalton Gardens resident who lives a few blocks from Canfield Mountain reported finding a dead deer in his backyard in mid-October and based on its injuries - bite marks on the side of its neck and wounds on the shoulder and head - he believes it too was killed by a cougar.

The most recent incident was reported to Idaho Fish and Game.

T.J. Ross, Fish and Game spokesman in the Panhandle Region, wrote that although "it is not particularly common for mountain lions to be seen or to prey on deer in Dalton Gardens, it is not surprising and it typically happens each year."

He said as temperatures cool in the mountains and the snow begins to accumulate up high, deer tend to move to lower elevations, often down into town.

As the deer move into town, their predators are more likely to be seen in town, as well, Ross said.

Cougars are known to prowl around Dalton Gardens at night and early morning. One person on social media said the same cougar has been around the area for several years.

On its website, the city even offers "cougar safety tips."

"Cougars are rarely aggressive toward humans," it states. "They are secretive, and usually avoid contact with people whenever possible. Absent evidence of a cougar’s aggressiveness or unacceptable willingness to be near people, it is not necessary to respond to sightings."

Still, Link said they and neighbors are uneasy about the possibility that a cougar killed a deer outside their homes.

She said some have suggested the deer, a yearling, was hit by a car. They said its injuries were near its back legs and said a cougar would have gone for the throat. They said the deer may have died in their yard, and then a cougar or a dog came began feeding on it.

Link thinks otherwise and said the cougar likely took the young deer down with little trouble.

"He was easy prey," she said.