Pasco owner cited after lion escapes cage

The owner of a lioness that escaped from its enclosure at a Pasco county animal sanctuary has been charged with a misdemeanor.

The 7-year-old lion named Savannah dug out of her primary enclosure at the Survival Outreach Sanctuary around 10 a.m. Friday.

16 Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers and four Pasco County Sheriff's deputies were dispatched to the sanctuary to help find the loose lion and secure the area.

Shortly after FWC officers arrived, they found the lion resting comfortably inside the sanctuary.  FWC officers and a veteran wildlife expert, Vernon Yates, tranquilized the lion and returned it to a secure enclosure.

“The animal remained within the Survival Outreach Sanctuary’s 10-foot-high perimeter fence and never posed an immediate risk to the public,” said FWC spokesman Gary Morse.

FWC conducted an inspection of the sanctuary and inspected its records. The lioness' owner, Judy Watson, was charged with one misdemeanor for conditions that led to an escape.

The Survival Outreach Sanctuary provides permanent homes to abused unwanted and abandoned exotic animals of all species, according to its website.