The recent killing of a cougar by police officers on Browns Creek Road is a sad incident that probably could have been avoided (Cougar killed on Browns Creek, Sept. 7, 2016).
It’s true that cougars occasionally travel through developed areas. Typically, the ones who do are young animals dispersing and trying to find a mate and establish a territory of their own. In most cases, these youngsters move on without harm to humans or domestic animals, and they usually try to avoid encounters with people whenever possible.
Unfortunately, some cougars mistakenly find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time, causing public concerns. This often causes impulsive decision-making by officials who are not equipped with the best available information.
The unfortunate killing of this cougar illustrates the need for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to adopt humane wildlife management protocols that can be implemented by police officers.
These should prioritize hazing, letting animals leave on their own, and translocating animals found in human communities before lethal control is considered. Other states, including California, have adopted and implemented nonlethal control policies to handle similar cougar encounters.
As it prepares to unveil its new cougar management plan, I encourage ODFW to do so as well, since the vast majority of Oregonians want to protect our cougars from unnecessary persecution.
For more information write: Scott Beckstead, rural outreach director, the Humane Society of the United States, 737 Tanglewood Street, Sutherlin, Ore. 97479. He can also be reached at sbeckstead@humanesociety.org or by calling 541-530-8509.
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