Panther

[Corn Woman]

We call them cougars here and that cat is nothing to play around with. They can stalk and attack before you even know they are out there. In drought years they come into my garden because I still use flood irrigation and its an oasis for deer and other wildlife. My husband has seen them dragging a elk up a hillside with very little effort and they are capable of taking down a child. My DD and SIL have heard that scream a block away from the house and it sent them running. The younger ones take domestic cats and dogs in my small town on a regular basis and a few of the desperate ones eat the cat food off the neighbors porch. Be cautious and watch the kids a hungry cat will hunt.

 

[the funny farm6]

the dnr here has been denying that there were cougars here, even though hunters have been catching them on their game cameras. finaly they said they did relese a couple males only. untill this past summer when an amish farmer shot one while it was killing a calf- guess what- it was a lactating FEMALE! only males my butt! and they said they relesed the males to bring down the deer populaton. but lets not make hunting cheaper or open more seasons.

in keokuk the rich row is boarderd by a large wooded area, and they have reported seeing cougars for years also, and a couple years ago a guy that lives there, shot a video of a half grown couger walking up his driveway and laying behind his car and sunning.

 

[rhoda_bruce]

Back when I had my sighting, I started playing with the idea that instead of having a coop knox, I need a yard knox. I was seriously thinking about doing my entire yard like the coop.....living in one massive cage, with a canapy over the whole yard. It didn't happen. Naturally, that would be a huge undertaking, but I toyed with the idea. I homeschool and I let my kids have a nice little recess, while I took care of a little business at home and when I called for them, they were riding their bikes on the street, right near the woods. I got them to come home real quick by mentioning to them that they are playing right where the panther was yesterday.....poor girls. But I tell you what, when the street lights came on today and I told the little boy the lights were on, he went right home without saying a word....running. Poor little guy. He doesn't wanna be kitty food. And my girls came right in....no complaints.

 

[Denim Deb]

We had problems years ago w/wild dogs. It was scary. None of the kids could play outside, and I didn't go in the yard unless I had a gun on me. I honestly didn't care what the cops said. But, they were easier to deal w/than a cougar. My hubby set up a live trap, and was able to catch one. After that, AC was able to round up the rest of them-including a female that had pups in the neighbor's barn! Then of course, you had all these people that felt so sorry for those poor dogs and want to adopt them.

 

[Joel_BC]

Leaving aside all practicalities and concerns for safety for a moment, I wanted to tell about a couple of interesting coincidences. I had just posted a couple of times on this thread, and a few hours later a woman who lives down around "the wide spot in the road" where our post office, mini-mart, and caf are located - about five miles from our place - came over to talk with my wife and myself. The conversation ran to many things, then she spontanously said that she'd seen a cougar within the last few days, ambling through her neighborhood. (I think it's likely a few people with rifles will be on the lookout for it, since there are some young children there in the vicinity - not to mention, pet dogs and cats.) Then, this morning, I heard a report on the radio that the wildlife officers have found that the number of coyotes, wolves, and cougars in our large general region has increased, due to the rise in the last five years or so in the deer population.

 

[baymule]

I live in a small town 75 miles north of Houston, Texas. Yes, there are cougars here. The reason most people deny their presense is because cougars are masters of stealth. They don't exactly advertise where they are. I have seen one in my whole life, but I have heard their scream quite a few times. There is no mistaking that sound for anything else. Sometimes, someone will report torn up livestock, dead livestock, but not very often. Just because you don't see them does not mean they aren't there.

Click on your state to see if you "officially" have cougars living in your state.

http://www.cougarfund.org/conservation/states/

 

[frustratedearthmother]

I grew up east of Houston and we had a panther/cougar that roamed the bayou area for several years. I can remember riding my hrose with some friends one evening and we were riding after dark. The horses started getting really nervous and a few minutes later we heard that panther scream! We gave the horses their heads, figuring they could see well enough in the dark to get us home quickly! And, they did!

I live south of Houston now and about 10 years ago a friend and I were coming home from a late shopping trip. She lived down a long dead-end road and as we were going to her house a cougar walked right out in the road in front of us. At first no one believed us, but over the next year or so there were several other sightings. They do exist!

 

[mississippifarmboy]

Cougars, panthers, mountain lions.... all the same criiter just different sub-species. I know, I raised them for years. The western cougar is the largest. My male was 7'2" long from nose to tail and weighed about 175 pounds. The one you saw Rhonda (and yes, I believe you 100%) was either a VERY large Florida panther or a female western cougar,or possibly a young male. In your part of the country the Florida panther is most likely although they seldom hit 100 pounds.
I know there are lots of big cats in strange places because of the changing laws. A few years ago Mississippi passed a law forbiding the ownership of large cats and other exotics. I personally know of several people who raised them that simply opened the cage doors before the law went into effect and turned them loose because if they were caught with them they faced a very expensive fine and jail time. The state here basicly left breeders with no way to get rid of the animals legally.
Cougars are by nature VERY reclusive. I've hiked and traveled all over the US, western Canada & Mexico. I've never seen a cougar in the wild and have talked to very few who have, even people who have lived their whole lives in areas known to have healthy populations of the big cats. They will eat everything from mice to elk. In the western states, mainly California, they have been known to eat the family cats and dogs and have even attacked a few hikers and such. It really isn't in a cougar's nature to hunt man, but when a big cat gets hungry enough... we become "food".

One note on big cats; they always stalk and attack from the rear. In parts of India it was traditional for people walking dark forest paths alone at night, or for those who hunted the big cats there to wear a mask with big eyes painted on the back. Supposedly a big cat would follow and thing the mask was a person looking at them ad wouldn't attack. No idea if it's true, but It sounded possible knowing what I do about big cats.

I lost most all of our pictures when our house burned down several years ago, but I found a couple in my computer....

 

[the funny farm6]

they are beautiful animals!

 

[frustratedearthmother]

That is awesome! I can't imagine how cool it must've been to have those magnificent animals close enough to hold and touch! The one that I saw in the road was so calm that my friend and I wondered if it was someone's pet that had either escaped or had been turned loose. Maybe not, but it was still amazing to see one that close. She and I still talk about it in awe all these years later.