An 11-month-old mountain lion, who was being kept as a pet, is on its way to a wildlife refuge in Arkansas. The Humane Society of the United States, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, New York City Police Department and the Bronx Zoo all collaborated with the rescue of the 80-pound, female cat from a New York City home.

The cat is now on its way to Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Humane Society Director of Animal Disaster Response Kelly Donithan said this mountain lion is relatively lucky that her owners recognized a wild cat is not fit to live in an apartment or any domestic environment. The owner’s tears and nervous chirps from the cougar as they drove her away painfully drives home the many victims of this horrendous trade and myth that wild animals belong anywhere but the wild.