Looks like the big cat just needed a cool place to chill for the afternoon.

A homeowner in Longmont, Colorado, got a startling surprise Monday afternoon when they headed into the garage. A mountain lion was taking an afternoon nap under the homeowner’s SUV on a property located on Steele Street after wandering through an open door.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) responded quickly and found the mountain lion to be a young male. CPW safely tranquilized the cat and relocate him to a safer, far less urban location—CPW says it was released back into a remote area in the mountains of the Roosevelt and Arapahoe National Forest.

Longmont Police also responded and assisted CPW officers in keeping the scene calm and getting the animal safely removed from the home. 

Residents in the area had reported seeing a mountain lion roaming the area before it was discovered sleeping in the open garage. This is the first mountain lion call in the city since last May, according to CPW, though they pointed out that that does not mean it's the first sighting in a year, as many of those go unreported. Mountain lion sightings are more common in areas like Boulder and Longmont.

CPW spokesperson Jason Clay says it's not uncommon for mountain lions to come into urban areas looking for food. 

“Mountain lions do utilize our urban areas fairly often for resources. They’ll go after livestock or even domestic pets, so having mountain lions in our urban areas is not unusual. It could be a dangerous situation for both people and mountain lions,” Clay said.  

Check out this video of the mountain lion being released after its capture: 

Wildlife officers Sam Peterson and Jason Duetsch successfully released the young mountain lion pulled from a garage in Longmont last night to a remote area in the @usfsarp. pic.twitter.com/akNm4Rr1h8

— CPW NE Region (@CPW_NE) June 2, 2020

CPW advises that if you encounter a mountain lion, do not engage it and call them for assistance. They also advised the public to call when one is spotted in an urban area, since it helps them track the activity of the big cats and help avoid dangerous situations. Most Coloradans know to take precautions from bears and other wildlife that come looking for food and shelter, and mountain lions are no different.

You can find more information about living with wildlife in Colorado here. 

Thankfully, this situation ended on a positive note, and there were no injuries or issues for either the homeowner or the cat. Have you ever had a close call with a mountain lion in Colorado? How would you react if you found one in your garage? Sound off in the comments below.