Photo: The Canadian Press

A young cougar, orphaned when its mother was hit by a vehicle, is recovering from frostbite and hunger in Williams Lake.

Conservation officer Ron LeBlanc went to a home on Monday to find the animal hiding under some lawn furniture on the deck.

He says officers set up a live trap, using sardines and lamb as enticements, and within hours the hungry cat had been caught.

LeBlanc says the homeowner thought his dog may have tangled with the cat, but other than having frostbite on his ear tips and being skinny and dehydrated, the cougar was in pretty good shape.

There are no facilities in Canada that rehabilitate cougar kittens to go back to the wild, but LeBlanc says the Greater Vancouver Zoo was willing to take in the animal, and it will be transferred there next week.

LeBlanc says at two to three months old, the cat was probably close to being weaned and has a very healthy appetite for meat.