Eagan Police: Watch Out for Cougars (MN..The four legged variety)

KSTP.com ^ | 10/5/09 | Becky Nahm

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

Eagan police issued a warning Monday to alert residents of evidence of cougars in the area.

Police said, last month officers found what appeared to be cougar feces at the police gun range located at the west end of Yankee Doodle Road near Fort Snelling State Park.

Police said they took two reports from residents who said they saw a cougar in the same area.

A third sighting was reported by a city employee. On October 2, he saw what he believed was a cougar laying in some grass in Blackhawk Park off Murphy Parkway.

Police warned residents to always be aware of their surroundings, supervise children in parks, and keep pets on a leash.

If you encounter a cougar, police suggest making yourself look bigger. Open your jacket or raise your arms. You can also throw rocks at the cougar. Never run away, turn away or bend down.

[JillValentine]

A cougar attacking its prey

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

Buckgun....

I’ll have to get one of those....

;-)

[goat granny]

Excellent question..........

[HamiltonJay]

Watch out for Cougars?

I thought I smelt that distinct combination of Virginia Slims, Vasingil and Summer’s Eve.

[goat granny]

Perhaps the odor emanating from my backside will cause it to run away......

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

I wouldn’t have waited that long....

But, that’s just me.

[pandoraou812]

Kmart had them on sale & it was a decent brand so we bought a bunch of them up lol. I ought to mess with he Hess guy & tell him James Bond had a buckgun & so does Clint Eastwood...

[ButThreeLeftsDo]

Chicken/Egg

Right?

[goat granny]

Would have never thought to use my dogs as bait, but a great idea......except they can outrun you.....OOP

[pandoraou812]

I was thinking are you supposed to wait for the rocks to come down from the sky so you can toss them? I think that advice was silly. Makes me think it is a just reason to have carry laws while in the wildlife. Somebody told me that now you can’t carry guns in national & state parks. I hope that isn’t true.

[TigersEye]

Hmmm if you can't bend down to get the rocks how are you going to throw rocks?

There's a smart alec in every crowd. You pick it up with your toes and flip it up where you can grab it, silly. The cougar will be so impressed with that move you probably won't have to throw it.

[randomhero97]

Me = two-legged cougar...

[goat granny]

Years back hubby and I went camping for vacation with our 5 kids and he always packed a gun....We use to go to regular camp grounds but also national forests and state forests...

The only time it would have been of use, he didn't pack it..We were in Georgia at a campground and after dark one of my boys needed to go to the bathroom...No problem, were in a lighted campgrounds....until I heard him yelling for help.....mom theres a dog here and won't let me move...I had heard the dog barking but thought nothing of it....until he yelled..

Turned to hubby and said Wheres the gun....bummer, it was the only time he didn't pack one in years of camping...

Sometimes a good threat is enough in the campgrounds...I yelled at him to stay put I was coming with a gun....(so I lied, big deal)

I saw the owner of the dog take off toward the bathroom and collar his animal....Things worked out OK that time...

[pandoraou812]

I glad it worked out that time. When we had our trailer at a campground where bears & drunk people wandered about we kept a flare gun. It is legal & I would have used it. Shame the campground got so bad we had to leave . I loved the cedar river.

[pandoraou812]

I wear boots so my toes can’t grab rocks. I think in my case I could just start singing loudly & the cougar would run away or drop dead.

[goat granny]

If you can get along with electricity and running water, the national forests use to be great, its been many years and I don't know how they are now, but each campsite was about 300 feet from the next and cut out in the forest..My youngest was in a playpen (not walking yet) and she did pick up a tick....but not a carrier of any disease. I was afraid because I had heard about Rocky Mountain spotted fever from tick bites..

With 5 kids, camping was the only way we could afford a vacation, but we all loved it.....

[Godwin1]

Two years ago the Chicago cops shot a cougar in a residential area about three miles from the city's downtown Loop area. When they cut it open, they discovered it had been eating deer. Speculation was that it had traveled from Wisconsin, following the railroad embankments which generally run through wooded ares. Deer are like vermin in the suburbs of Chicago.
On a local radio news program, animal rights people had a fit—better training and equipment by the cops would have led to a better result, they complained. The district police commander was asked to comment on this. He said there was a wild, dangerous animal that had posed a threat to the community, particularly to children. The cops had killed it, removing the threat. "What better result could there have been?", he said, his voice expressing bewilderment. I assume he was sent to PC class for media refresher training. But he was right.

[TigersEye]

I wear boots so my toes can’t grab rocks.

There's your first mistake. ;^)

[pandoraou812]

I love it too. We used the trailer as a summer vacation house. It was on a pond & very quiet & reasonable at first. Then the owner just let druggies & drunks take over. We couldn't have afforded it anyway since he raised the rent to five grand & with gas prices & little work it was impossible.The drinking & fighting was another reason to leave.

Now I need a truck so we can pull it. We had an older Fleetwood that we used for a few years but with Sassy getting older we wanted more room. Plus the fact that once you park it you are stuck there unless you tow a car was a hassle. I like to camp & hope to be able to next summer.

[Defiant]

Guilty!