Fish and Wildlife officials want people in Mountain View County to exercise caution following an unusual number of recent cougar attacks on pets and livestock.
“We're seeing an increased number of cougars predating on domestic livestock or domestic pets, specifically,” said Adam Mirus, district Fish and Wildlife officer.
“We've had probably half a dozen occasions now where a cougar's been responsible for killing either cats or dogs right on doorsteps or decks of residences. That's something that we haven't had very often in past years.”
Last year, Fish and Wildlife officers also found themselves in the tough position of putting down a number of cougars due to safety concerns, he said.
“We're seeing the same thing again this year. It's just what we're seeing is that closer interaction where the cats are more brazen and come right onto the decks,” he said.
Since mid-December, officers have had to destroy about six cougars that had killed people's pets or livestock. The animals have mostly been active right at dawn and dusk, he said.
Whether someone is letting out the family pet early in the morning or after supper when it's dark, there is a potential for a cougar to ambush the cat or dog, even on the deck or by the door, he said.
“So because they're coming that close to residences at those times, we just want everybody in Mountain View County to be aware of that and to take precautions,” he said.
People, children included, should only go out in pairs or groups, and pets should be watched closely when allowed to play outside, he said.
“When we live this close to the mountains in the foothills like this, you're going to have that interaction with wildlife. But it seems lately that the cougars have been kind of crossing that line and predating on domestic pets,” he said.
“So we just don't want that to ever, of course, be a human — it's bad enough that it's pets, we just don't want it to escalate.”
Depending on when someone reports a cougar attack, officers might be able to respond within hours. If an incident occurs at night, they'll show up the next morning with trackers to locate the cougar and put it down.
To date, the cougars killed have all been young — two years old or younger — and weighed about 100 pounds or less, he said.
“Those are generally the kittens who have just fledged out from their mother, so they're learning to kill for themselves,” he said.
“They may not be the best at getting deer and everything else, so they're just looking for opportunities.”
And a tied-up dog in a yard or on a deck presents easy prey for an opportunist cougar that is still developing its ability to hunt. This is foothills country, and people should be vigilant, he said.
“If they see cougars on their own land, they can shoot them year round,” he said.
While garbage has a tendency to attract coyotes and bears during the summer, it's not going to attract cougars, he said.
“Where you do see them being attracted is to feed patterns of say, deer. So if the deer are coming into town every night going to the same place to get birdseed or salt block, a cougar's going to set up on that trail and get a deer,” he said.
Should someone find a cougar blocking his or her path back to the door, the last course of action to take is to run away.
“If you're to turn and run, that brings on that natural instinct for them to chase,” he said.
“With cougars, you really have to make yourself look bigger and loud and you have to make yourself look like the predator. If there's something close by that you can throw at them, or whatever the case may be, then do that.”
As soon as a person finds safety, he or she should call Fish and Wildlife, he said.
“The alarming thing for me is last year I don't recall having any cougars that killed domestic pets or livestock,” he said.
People should call Fish and Wildlife officials as soon as possible, regardless of the time, in case of cougar sightings or killed livestock, he said. The district office in Sundre can be reached during regular hours at 403-638-3805. Alternatively, reports can be called in any time by calling 1-800-642-3800.
On top of the recent cougar attacks, Fish and Wildlife officials in the region have also been getting many calls about moose in Didsbury. There are about seven moose that are known to have been staying around the town, he said, adding three of them are a cow and two calves.
Officials have been getting several calls a day, as have the Didsbury RCMP, about the moose.
But if the moose are not posing a physical threat or acting aggressively towards people, Fish and Wildlife will not action a call. The concern comes up if the animals are getting close to the schools or if children are approaching them, he said, adding in such cases officers would come in to encourage the moose to move along.
However, most of the calls received are simply to inform officials a moose is in the area, he said.
“That's kind of the idea of living out in the country, is seeing wildlife,” he said.
Still, it's important to exercise due caution. There have also been calls reporting children throwing rocks at the moose, or even trying to pet the animals, he said.
“They're wildlife — they don't want to be pet, they need to have their distance. If they're feeding, give them space,” he said.
Some people will be tempted to get their dogs to chase off the moose, he said.
“What usually happens there is the moose will put up with that once or twice, and then at some point in time, they'll just stop and they'll kick the dog — or dogs — and kill them.”
Fortunately, there have been no negative interactions recently reported between moose and people. But after some moose found their way onto school grounds, the facility was put on lockdown, he said.
If the moose are just feeding on trees and shrubs, that's to be expected. Unless they're exhibiting aggressive behaviour, there's no reason for Fish and Wildlife to take action. With multiple moose, it's really hard — if not almost impossible — to drug them all for relocation, he said.
“Where do you move them? They're in habitat now that's good for them,” he said.
And at this time of year, it takes a drugged moose longer to recover, he said.
“It's that much harder on their system. If we can hold off to the spring, they're going to move on like they do every year.”
The last thing officials want to do is put them down, he said.
“If we get calls where they are being aggressive towards people, or they're constantly hanging out at the school, then we're probably going to have to put them down. I know the public's not going to be happy about that, but that's also a reality as well — we'd rather everyone be safe than the moose have an opportunity to hurt someone,” he said.
