Oregon Jogger kicks cougar

[OldBroad44]

Yesterday a cougar came after a jogger on a Dunn Forest trail. (McDonald-Dunn forests are the research forests just northwest of Corvallis that are owned by OSU. I live within a mile of the McDonald part.) The jogger kicked the cougar in the head and ran. But cougar followed. Fortunately, some other hikers with a dog appeared around a bend in the trail and cougar took off.

Dunn Forest is closed now while they try to find cougar using dogs. They plan to kill rather than relocate the cougar, as it is clearly aggressive and dangerous to people. Or at least would have been if intended lunch hadn't been so feisty and uncooperative.

(Could someone provide link to article in Corvallis Gazette-Times or Albany Democrat-Herald? My device won't copy links.)

We have a resident cougar in our neighborhood, but she hasn't caused any problems or stalked anyone. Stays hidden in day. Apparently had a couple of cubs last year. People saw the two cubs. We find deer kills round and about. Cougar has been in the neighborhood about six years, and has really helped with the deer overpopulation problem. This is a small residential area too built up for it to be workable to shoot the deer. So the cougar is a help. A useful restoration of the ecological balance. But every household here has guns. So nobody is worried. If it starts stalking people someone will take it out. Otherwise, it's live and let live.

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[edslhead]

State wildlife officials on Wednesday morning captured and killed a female cougar that reportedly stalked a jogger in the woods north of Corvallis last weekend, according to an Oregon Fish and Wildlife news release.
Specially trained hounds picked up the animal's scent about one-quarter mile from where the incident took place. Trackers worked with the hounds to follow the scent, tracking the cougar from Dunn Forest onto adjacent property where it was treed after access permission was obtained by the landowner.
The cougar's carcass is being taken to an OSU College of Veterinary Medicine laboratory for evaluation. The animal weighed 75 pounds and is estimated to be between 1 and 2 years old.




On Saturday, a man reported that a mountain lion had aggressively approached him as he was jogging on a trail in Oregon State University's Dunn Research Forest.
The man said he kicked the big cat in the head and then ran away, but the cougar continued to follow him and only broke off the pursuit after hikers with a dog came around a bend in the trail.
Dunn Forest was closed for multiple days during the search, but has been reopened. Neighboring McDonald Forest has remained open to recreational use during the incident. However, OSU reminds visitors to remain vigilant.
The only known fatal cougar attack in Oregon history occurred last fall, when a 55-year-old woman was killed while hiking alone in the Mount Hood National Forest near Welches. The mountain lion believed to be responsible for the attack was killed by wildlife managers.
Here's what the Department of Fish and Wildlife recommends you do if you encounter a cougar:





• Never approach it for any reason.
• Try to make yourself appear large by raising your hands over your head or holding your coat open. Do not bend over or crouch down. Hold small children in your arms.


• Fight back if you are attacked. Use sticks, rocks or whatever you can as weapons.
When enjoying the outdoors:
• Make noise to reduce the chance of surprising a cougar or other predator.
• Always keep children close and in sight.
• Avoid hiking or jogging alone.

 

[CRBMoA]

Cougar captured, put down near OSU's Dunn Forest

 

[2A2Dend]

Greet & Meat.
Seriously, what's to examine?
Wasted resources.

 

[Member 5605]

I've posted previously in another thread a video of a cougar kitten sitting on my Pastors back porch that's a mile from this forest and well within city limits. The cougar ran into the brush behind the house, then seconds later momma cougar sprang from under the porch and followed kitten.

This will continue as they acclimate and we push the urban growth boundary further out.

 

[CRBMoA]

I have a racoon or two living in my backyard.

 

[OldBroad44]

I've posted previously in another thread a video of a cougar kitten sitting on my Pastors back porch that's a mile from this forest and well within city limits. The cougar ran into the brush behind the house, then seconds later momma cougar sprang from under the porch and followed kitten.

This will continue as they acclimate and we push the urban growth boundary further out.

I think the problem with cougars is that Oregon changed the laws so as to eliminate all effective ways of hunting cougars, that is, with baits or dogs. So basically they arent hunted now. Those that are taken tend to be incidental. That is, the hunter was hunting something else, but got a cougar tag too just in case. So very few are taken.

Predators that are seriously hunted learn from their mothers to avoid humans. Those that aren't don't. And then some of them start exploring the possibility of humans as food. So here we are. We not only have a lot more cougars, but they also are becoming more dangerous and less able to co-exist with us, the top predator. It was just a matter of time before they started killing people. First death from cougar attack in Oregon was last fall. There will likely be more.

 

[OldBroad44]

And as for the advice about what to do to stay safe from cougars, the only part I consider all that useful is the advice to take a friend. A buddy. I always take Buddy, even when just walking around neighborhood.

("Buddy" is a 686 snubby, my EDC.)

 

[OldBroad44]

Greet & Meat.
Seriously, what's to examine?
Wasted resources.

Presumably the examination was to see if the animal was rabid, starving, or old with broken teeth, etc. But it sounds like this was a young healthy animal that just decided it, not humans, was the top predator. And that creates problems.

 

[CLT65]

I'm glad it was an adult jogger, and not a young kid.