By Barrett Golding 2007.12.12 5 Comments»
Had some visitors here in the ‘hood. This message and photo came in from my neighbor (Thanks, Debbie)…
This is one of the 2 cougar kits that was roaming our neighborhood. This one found refuge in our window well until Fish and Game came and got him. What a beautiful animal.
What does Fish and Game plan to do with the kitten? What happened to the kitten’s mother?
my guess is F&G, 1st of all, plans to keep them from dying, which they surely would have if left where they were, near lotsa pickups-at-60mph county roads and an interstate.
as to the mom, only good explanation as to why these kits were so far from home, and so near to man, is that mom is dead.
again, just guessing here, but F&G’ll likely keep ’em for the next few months of winter and release ’em somewhere fulll of food in spring. just a guess, tho.
Yep, it seems reasonable to assume that mom is dead. But I wondered if anyone knew how she was killed – sport hunting, poaching, depredation kill, vehicle kill, or any other of a long list of possibilities.
There are only three options Fish & Game would have for these kittens. One – check their health and relocate them quickly to a place far enough away from people to keep them out of trouble. Two – take them in and find a good home for them at a zoo or sanctuary. Three – euthanize (kill) them.
The problem with option one is that kittens need to stay with their mother 12 to 18 months to learn the skills and build the strength necessary for their survival. Although some experts believe they can survive after 6 months.
Fish & Game doesn’t have the facilities, manpower or money to take in cougar kittens, care for them for a few months, teach them to hunt while they are feeding them the meat they need to survive – then release them. There are a few rehabilitation groups, emphasis on few. It is incredibly expensive and groups doing it scrape by one donations.
thanks for the info, Karen. no one i know saw the mom dead or alive. i have a call into the local game warden of MT Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP, formerly F&G):
http://fwp.mt.gov/r3/
maybe he’ll call with followup info.
Sure is one handsome Cougar !!
I realise that this thread is quite olde ; however , while I was perusing the images’ section of Google , I came across this awesome picture .
He looks to be about 3-6 months old ( still small , but has his full adult colours and markings ) .
I certainly hope that this l’il guy made it okay , and his sibling , too .
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