OT: AnotherCougar sighting this in WI

[3leggedturtle]

Forget the town but it was within 40 miles or so of La Crosse. 2 turkey hunters chased off a cougar while it was attacking a cow!! DNR finally admitted it was a cougar as the tracks and wounds on the cows couldnt be discounted. Had friends tell me they were around the area. Tho DNR said it was just TRAVLING thru from South Dakota I've had nights where i felt I was being watched while camping. Glad I had 45 lever with.

[Buck Elliott]

Hmmmm! "Traveling" to where...?

Stupid Fish Cops!

Besides, "traveling" is a moot point. Traveling or not, it was THERE!!!

Was it carrying a SD Driver's License...? Could it have been a MI cougar, going to see relatives in Minnesota? Maybe to watch the Prairie Home Companion taping in St. Paul...? Lots of fat, tender, HSUS-type liberals in the studio audience, I'd bet...

[3leggedturtle]

Buck you can put in words; what ican only think!! Somewhere tween my brain fingers it loses the effect. SFC's prolly didnt do a background check on it. Tho "they did say that the cow had to be humanely euthanized cuz of its wounds. I keep thinking what a waste of meat especially since there was no lead contamination

[TedH]

Traveling through? Surely they can come up with a better story than that!

[Buck Elliott]

Ya can't fix STUPID...

[BenT]

It was outside the town of Wonewoc. It happened about a mile and half down the road from my in-laws. I was at their house Sunday when it was seen . The turkey hunters who seen it shot over it's head and it wasn't going to leave the calf it was having for lunch. Now as for me I thinking that in broad daylight and not afraid of people, it's a female with young . It was the first documented livestock kill by a cougar in Wisconsin in the last 70 years.

I myself would have shot it since the DNR states that these are pets that released into the wild , thus are not protected.

Last year a cougar was treed on my buddy's property out side of Shell Lake , WI . Pictures were given to the DNR and then the DNR carnival began as they tried to catch it and radio it , but failed.

[Old Time Hunter]

This is a supposed "tomcat" according to the DNR in Franklin, Wisconsin a couple of years ago.

[Bruce]

Deleted.

[BenT]

I think some of their policies are stupid ,not so much the people inforcing them.

[Buck Elliott]

Well, Buck, have you ever heard of the term careful and precise - other than quick and stupid? I see a trend here towards calling our wildlife officials anything but professional - I think some of our members should have to walk in their shoes for a few steps. They are not your enemy, but you can make them one if you try.

I know where I speak from.

Did you read ALL of my posts on this matter..? Doesn't appear that you have.

The lion was described as "traveling through from SD...?" How did "they" determine THAT? Regardless of direction or destination, the lion was THERE --- in WISCONSIN... Did it immigrate illegally? Whence? Why? (WHo knows...) Making such an inane, unfounded statement immediately points a finger of doubt at the person making it.

In my lifetime, I have known a large number of Game & Fish (DNR, or whatever the department title...) wardens, biologists and officials. A goodly number of them have been highly proficient and professional, while a smaller-but-increasing proportion of them are nothing more than college graduate hacks, who assume instant expertise, the moment they pin on their little badges. Never mind that their real knowledge and experience amount to something close to nothing...

Don't assume that I was talking about you, or about friends of yours, or anyone you are personally aquainted with. I don't know that I was. But, STUPID is where you find it, and needs to be pointed out from time to time; let the chips fall where they may.

As to whether or not they are my enemy, that depends entirely upon them.

[Bruce]

Deleted.

[BenT]

The WI DNR doesn't want to admit that there is cougars in WI , when there is plenty of habitat, especialy the remote bluffs all along the Mississippi river valley. Unless the DNR can capture one and test it they won't admit they are living in the wild. I am just one person in WI and I have had three friends who have had experiences with cougars. They are there , that is where the common sense falls off. The DNR does need to verify these sightings , but with the quanity of reports they need to come to the conclusion that they are present .

The coolist thing I seen was from my buddy's trail camera on a food plot in northern WI. He had video of a bear running across his food plot dragging a dead deer in his mouth . As the bear left the food plot you could see the cougar enter the far end of the plot and then crouch down. It appear that the bear stole it's lunch and it was folllowing the bear .

[pdentrem]

Now THAT I would like to have seen!

The coolist thing I seen was from my buddy's trail camera on a food plot in northern WI. He had video of a bear running across his food plot dragging a dead deer in his mouth . As the bear left the food plot you could see the cougar enter the far end of the plot and then crouch down. It appear that the bear stole it's lunch and it was folllowing the bear .[/quote]

[Old Time Hunter]

But, the agency has to be very cautious about confirmations. Think about the wolf issues and you will see a comparable biological/social comparision. If they are there, will they have to change hunting/predator control regulations?

Next is the issue of released/escaped captives. A picture of a cougar walking across the grass in front of a big picture window in an obviously developed area may suggest a releseased/escaped cat.

First off why? Either there is or isn't, no ***** footing.

Second, that cougar walking across the grass at the Pen & Inc in Franklin, WI was actually identified by a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources biologist and confirmed by a witness who happened to be a Sheriffs Deputy, then 24 hours later denied by the biologists boss. 2 days later that same Cougar was shot and killed by Chicago police, in Chicago. Guess that is rationalization for it just "passing thru".

I took a picture of a Cougar sitting in the middle of my road in Northern Wisconsin and I gave it to the DNR, he said "yep, it is definitely a Cougar by my standards, but does not officially exist by department standards". Please explain why there is this kind of response?

[Bruce]

OTH, I could not began to understand why they would act that way. Was the Chigago cat confirmed as wild or released/escaped? Just to clarify, I obviously don't have a clue about what is going on in Wisconsin. Sounds to me like it is pretty obvious there are cats there. I was just responding to the "Stupid Fish Cops" comment.

I think it is best for me to move on to another issue as I am not constructively adding to this one.

[El Chivo]

plenty of Cougars at Applebee's on Friday happy hour

[willygene]

bird and turtle cops possum possi what ever they are all the same every where and the biologist are even worse. i know what i have seen and where, and i get sick of hearing they know better and i didn't see what i saw. we have had several large cats, cougars to be more precise here where i live and they still say there not here, i have little respect for idiots and people who would say i lied about what i saw, and yes bruce i to am retired law enforcement.

[BenT]

Bruce , your perspective is fine with me . It seems that some of our goverment agencys have agendas. What they are ,we are not sure at times. The Chicago Cat was traced back to South Dakota . It was also traced to a cat seen in an abandoned barn in southern WI. These cat have migrated from somewhere, what I'm not sure is how old was the south Dakota DNA data they traced it to. Meaning was it over 5 years old , that would mean that it wasn't just passing through , it could have been living here for a while.

El Chivo , I need to go to Applebee's more offen and watch the wildlife.