Following the Chihuahua incident in the Hollywood Hills last month, P22 has been captured and his vitals assessed by the National Park Service and Wildlife Biologists who monitor him. He has been taken to a top facility in California for care.

P22 was first discovered in February 2012, by wildlife biologist Miguel Ordenana, when he was two years old, photographed via a camera trap as documented in The Cat That Changed America.

Now P22 is 12 years old, an old age for a mountain lion in the wild, who typically live for 10 years. But the celebrity lion, has recently changed his behavior and was captured for a medical evaluation. The scientists will then decide what is best for his welfare.

P-22 has recently become more active outside of his Griffith Park domain according to some reports and there is concern that incidents with dog walkers may increase. In the past P22 has studiously avoided coming into contact with humans, avoiding joggers and dog walkers.

“P-22 has always been in an unprecedented situation,” says Save LA Cougars Beth Pratt. “Never has a mountain lion lived in such an urban setting in one of the world’s most populated cities. He is also a remarkably old mountain lion, living well past the normal life expectancy of his kind, and may now be exhibiting signs of distress. Although he has always been impacted by the isolation the freeways caused him, as P-22 has aged, the challenges associated with living on an island of habitat seem to be increasing and the scientists are noting a recent change in his behavior.”

Now Biologists from both the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and the Santa Monica Mountains National Park Service (NPS) plan to capture P-22. After a health and medical evaluation, the veterinarians will determine next steps for him.

“P-22 has given us so much,” says Beth Pratt. “He is a beloved wild mountain lion that survived against all odds, and his plight of being trapped in Griffith Park after making a perilous journey across two of the busiest freeways in the country showed the world how harmful our roadways can be to mountain lions and all wildlife.”

What do you think should happen to P22? Write in the comments section. And you can watch his life story in The Cat That Changed America and read the book.

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Will P22 have a happy ending? Read his story in The Cat That Changed America