A new rule is being considered - comment period is open. Those of us who live on the wilderness frontier love our wild neighbors, but we also should have the right to protect ourselves and our community when the wildlife lose their proper fear of people and choose the easy pickings that can be found near humans.
We have had a cougar pass through our property. We have geese and chickens, dogs and cats. We ourselves would not want a cougar attacking us or our small grandchildren who come to visit. The politicians need to listen to the WDFW. The commission, whose members are appointed by the governor, are once again going against WDFW’s own scientific recommendations and direction from wildlife officers who are on the front lines. These are the men and women who, more often than not, are the ones called to dispatch a problem cougar that has killed livestock or pets, or has found itself in the backyard of a residence.” I am sick of government that refuses to listen to true science.
As the cougar population grows so do the problems associated with them. Hound hu ting kept the cougar appropriately respectful of humans. To put the problems and dangers associated with cougars in perspective for urban dwellers I suggest you observe the activities of your own kitty cat and those of the neighborhood feral cats fot a few days. Observe how fast the move, how far they can jump, their ferocity in attacking prey and the strength and dexterity of their claws. Now imaging that same cat at 100 - 200 pounds.. This gives one some ideas of the powers of a cougar. Beautiful for sure, but not too comfortable with us humans.
Thank you for posting this …too many rules and laws are being changed under our noses. They have decimated the seabird population here in western WA as well as the sea lions. Fish no longer exist in the lower sound due to ‘mismanagement’ by this ‘agency’.
As development grows wild areas for cougars shrink along with the amount of feeder animals. When a cougar gets hungry he will move in closer to populated areas where they can find food whether it be livestock, pets, or humans to them it's food. So the cougar population has to be regulated to match what is available in the areas that best suit them or they will continue to outgrow their natural surroundings and will continue to move into residential and towns hunting for food.
I am in favor of legitimate game management but not at the expense of the animals and agricultural people. I also never listen to the anti-hunting drivel from the Humane Society. I never go into the words with out a large bore pistol just in case I run into either four legged or two legged predators
While the present rules for managing cougars are not great IMHO, this latest proposal simply makes this situation worse. The elimination of hound hunting has been detrimental to management of the population and was based on emotions not facts. This latest proposal IMHO is more of the same, emotions instead of scientific facts using credible data.
Animals have a natural fear of creatures which can harm them, as do cougars, and cougars have lost that fear thus present an ever increasing hazard to humans because of this. We watched the same thing happen with bears which learned to live off the garbage humans left with no adverse impacts to them for doing so. The same balance upset if occurring with cougars as they are losing their fear of humans and mankind continues to compete with animals for habit.
We need a Commission which makes intelligent decisions based on scientific bases using credible data! This proposal demonstrates that is not happening IMHO.
When I clicked on their link for email comment there did not seem to be a place to comment. There was a place to sign in, but no place to leave a comment that I saw.
We have had a cougar pass through our property. We have geese and chickens, dogs and cats. We ourselves would not want a cougar attacking us or our small grandchildren who come to visit. The politicians need to listen to the WDFW. The commission, whose members are appointed by the governor, are once again going against WDFW’s own scientific recommendations and direction from wildlife officers who are on the front lines. These are the men and women who, more often than not, are the ones called to dispatch a problem cougar that has killed livestock or pets, or has found itself in the backyard of a residence.” I am sick of government that refuses to listen to true science.
As the cougar population grows so do the problems associated with them. Hound hu ting kept the cougar appropriately respectful of humans. To put the problems and dangers associated with cougars in perspective for urban dwellers I suggest you observe the activities of your own kitty cat and those of the neighborhood feral cats fot a few days. Observe how fast the move, how far they can jump, their ferocity in attacking prey and the strength and dexterity of their claws. Now imaging that same cat at 100 - 200 pounds.. This gives one some ideas of the powers of a cougar. Beautiful for sure, but not too comfortable with us humans.
Thank you for posting this …too many rules and laws are being changed under our noses. They have decimated the seabird population here in western WA as well as the sea lions. Fish no longer exist in the lower sound due to ‘mismanagement’ by this ‘agency’.
Thank you. I wanted to send the picture of the lady attacked by a cougar near Snoqualmie, and did.
As development grows wild areas for cougars shrink along with the amount of feeder animals. When a cougar gets hungry he will move in closer to populated areas where they can find food whether it be livestock, pets, or humans to them it's food. So the cougar population has to be regulated to match what is available in the areas that best suit them or they will continue to outgrow their natural surroundings and will continue to move into residential and towns hunting for food.
I am in favor of legitimate game management but not at the expense of the animals and agricultural people. I also never listen to the anti-hunting drivel from the Humane Society. I never go into the words with out a large bore pistol just in case I run into either four legged or two legged predators
One can send an e-mail here to comment:
2024cougarseasonsetting@publicinput.com, or leave a voicemail message by calling 855-925-2801 and entering project code 1261. This info is from https://publicinput.com/2024cougarseasonsetting
Please oppose the proposed rule changes regarding the cougars in our state. When government seeks to control everything it just messes everything up!!
While the present rules for managing cougars are not great IMHO, this latest proposal simply makes this situation worse. The elimination of hound hunting has been detrimental to management of the population and was based on emotions not facts. This latest proposal IMHO is more of the same, emotions instead of scientific facts using credible data.
Animals have a natural fear of creatures which can harm them, as do cougars, and cougars have lost that fear thus present an ever increasing hazard to humans because of this. We watched the same thing happen with bears which learned to live off the garbage humans left with no adverse impacts to them for doing so. The same balance upset if occurring with cougars as they are losing their fear of humans and mankind continues to compete with animals for habit.
We need a Commission which makes intelligent decisions based on scientific bases using credible data! This proposal demonstrates that is not happening IMHO.
We need to manage the Cougars. Do the right thing for the rural residents.
When I clicked on their link for email comment there did not seem to be a place to comment. There was a place to sign in, but no place to leave a comment that I saw.
Try here --> 2024cougarseasonsetting@publicinput.com