Learning to live with cougars
The cougar sighting - breaking into attractants or spending a lot of time near people and houses. Individuals usually report to local police, then if not trained the police should report the concern to the nearest Federal Agency, Department of Fish & Game/Wildlife (USDI), Fish, Wildlife & Parks, or NGO, Mountain Lion Foundation (SAC).
Cougar conflict specialists go and investigate the situation and look for evidence of the species and usually an attractant.
Officials secure the attractant – get people to secure pets, children and put garbage away, put electric fencing around chicken coops and corrals, pick up fruit from fruit trees in their yard – and monitor the situation. This often enough to keep the cougars, bears, Bobcats, Wolves, coyotes, etc. away.
WAIT – Give the cougar time to move on. – Quite often the cougar is a transient changing or looking for new territory, or has been forced or chased out of his old habitat by natural disaster, another predator or lack of prey animals.
Put up WARNING SIGNS and NOTIFY NEWS MEDIA sources – in the local area, parks, neighborhoods where he might be, or move to in his transit. Refresh every one of the basic procedures when encountering a cougar. If a popular nature walk/park near downtown and/or resort like Coeur d’Alene’s Tubbs Hill; hand out whistles, maybe bear spray (make available $) and instruction pamphlet what to do if you encounter a cougar to alert walkers/hikers. Warn of hiking between dusk and dawn (cougars favorite hunting time) especially with small children and pets. If necessary, close down the hiking trail.
If he cougar is persistent - or the attractants can’t easily be secured, officials make a preventative move of the cougar, with quick response team on list of trained, and equipped personnel nearest sighting for dispatch if necessary. They must be trained on the cougar and safe handling of chemical immobilization of animals, esp. the cougar.
There should be 2 – 3 employees or more (a Cougar Action Team) trained to track and/or use houndsmen (maybe on loose call) to pursue the cougar on foot, snowshoes, truck, etc.
When they dart and sedate the cougar in an urban area and catch up to him they gather as much information as possible, weight, age, measure, etc., and put in a cage/van and lightly sedate for travel.
OR – IF THEY MUST PURSUE - using snowmobiles, on foot, snowshoes, truck, etc. they cut a track of a cougar, let dogs (with radio collars best) get used to scent and turn loose. They can cover many miles while you cover a few. They will use the age old cat vs dog mentality and hold the cat at bay or put it up a tree (99% of captures happen up a tree).
Cougars have a mentality of kind of shy. They don’t look to fight. Take advantage of all we know about them.
Properly sedate (darting), use equipment to climb the tree, remove the cat from tree safely, once they catch up to him they get a hobble rope on the hind legs, grab by the tail and lower down. A team talking effort between the ground and tree guys.
Once on the ground gather as much information as possible, weight, age, measure, etc. and put in a blanket, cage for travel. If you want to track and have the equipment, priority one is to get a collar on him. You have about an hour! Then lightly sedate for transport.
Relocating – driver, transport vehicle, comfort & light sedation for the ride, and move inside his territory of 100 to 150 miles, and if a transient he may move on. Give a reversal if necessary.
Often within its home range to give people a chance to clean up the attractants and educate, refresh their children’s awareness and closely monitor their pets.
If the cougar continues to come back - after the attractants have been secured and FWS has handled it several times or the cougar begins to act aggressively, then capture and transport outside 150 miles when truly problematic - depending on situation. Arrive at destination release point, give a reversal if necessary and release him. Be sure he stands up and does what a cat does. This T & R may be controversial but I absolutely believe in giving the Big Cat a chance at a longer life, even if he has to dodge other predators, unfamiliar terrain and environment or sport/trophy hunters! If you kill him on the spot you end that strong genetic line.
FWS at some point may determine, after several efforts and further consulting, if the cougar needs to be put down or other actions need to be taken, i.e. transfer to a Zoo, Wildlife Park or Rescue/Sanctuary. Also, they should consult with the land management agency – Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish, Wildlife and Parks, Forest Service, and National Park when necessary – to ensure the cougar is released into an appropriate area to do what’s best for the cougar and for people.
If a female, especially female with cubs, try to give it more of a chance. If a sub-adult male, and they seem to have less luck moving them sometimes, the FWS may be a little less tolerant of some of their actions. Still, they should try to give them a pretty good chance for a future.
In some situations FWS should try a “hard release” where barking dogs and cracker shells are used to try to scare/haze the cougar and condition it to stay away from humans and the urban areas.
Kittens – if any involved, capture and contact Oregon Zoo’s Michelle Schiremen to find a home.
Each one of these is really situational depending on what the investigation at the time produces.
Relocation Management Coordination – Regional/District/Local offices of the Departments of Fish & Wildlife/Game, DNR, BLM, USFS, and Parks when necessary.
As cougars continue to make incursions into urban areas, our human population continues to explode, humans continue developing and moving into their wildlands and historical territory, and the animals continue losing habitat, it’s up to both the agencies and the residents to prevent conflicts. It does take time to build that acceptance of cougars, Bears, Wolves, Bobcats, Coyotes and knowing how to live with the predators so you don’t have conflicts. It’s on the predators and the people, especially the people, to figure out how to live with these animals!
GROUPS INVOLVED:
Mountain Lion Foundation – has compiled much information and access to the California Department of Fish & Game, and what the local and district offices have learned.
Panthera – has outstanding research and scientific information, an outstanding track record hands-on the cougar research from their Grand Teton Project, the Puma Program and other Mountain Lion projects and their international projects with other Big Cats to add.
Cougar Fund – is specializing in education and outreach with good information to add.
Zoo’s, Wildlife Parks, Rescue/Sanctuaries and Private Owners – have invaluable information saving, chemical immobilization and transporting Big Cats that could be pieced together for an outstanding comprehensive guide for a Cougar Action Team.
Chemical Immobilization of Animals – Recommend courses/workshops training programs several such as “Safe – Capture International, Inc.” a local operation Snohomish, WA (email: safecapture@aol.com) and others.
Even out of country organizations such as the International Campaign Against Canned Hunting, Born Free, Humane Society International, Cheetah Conservation Fund, Africat, SA Caracal group, etc. have invaluable information when all is put together it could be an outstanding procedure.
If these groups would coordinate, interact and exchange information better the funding would be more effective, the cat’s best interest would be enhanced, and it would be more effect in stopping the decline. And might be used around the world! In fact the “International Campaign Against Canned Hunting” @cannedhunt.int. is doing some outstanding work discrediting trophy “canned” hunting operations, organizations such as SFI and the philosophy.