labradorguy

Unfortunately, that's probably the most factual statement on this entire thread....

Why go out and work for your food when you can just stand around and get all the freebies...lol. The perfect analogy for 21st century America.

That's the attitude the MDC guy had. He told me I should have taken a picture... I told him that was a really good idea since I always carry my iPhone out (and the camera turned on) while I am brush cutting a big field full of trees, vines, briars, and brambles. lol. I told him if he could not confirm a cougar from what was left of a dead doe with a cut up back, or from the hair sticking a strand of barbwire 20 yards from where she was, then he basically just didn't want it confirmed. The old man who has ground next to me told me right after I bought the farm that he once saw a mountain lion on my place. I gave him a hard time about it and we had a good laugh. Right after I saw the one at my farm, I gave him a call and apologized. For the record, the cat that followed me was on the border of the San Juan's Lizardhead Wilderness, not in the St. Louis Forest Park. It's a fairly common thing there, the cats hear a rifle go off and it's like ringing a dinner bell. I've never saw a UFO either...

Pretty interesting. It makes a person wonder what it was. I've only ever saw them by themselves, or a mother with a young one, but I'm no cat expert. ?? I've had wolves move down the opposite bank from me while fishing in British Columbia, but I'm too new to MO to know if there are any of them around here. I never really minded that feeling of being part of the food chain, even in Canada with a Griz standing there looking at me. It's nice to know that there is still some "wild" left in North America. In an era when our wildlife is all managed, it's nice to know that there are a few species that are still "managing" themselves just fine.

We always saw more sign than the actual animals. After seeing the one at my farm, it made me wonder just how many might actually be running around here. lol.

I had one stalking me one night when I hunted right up till dark. I was chasing a very big bull and ended up about three miles from my truck. I had to walk out in the dark on an old logging road. It was in 3-4" of fresh snow and mostly uphill at 11,000 ft., so it was slow going. I heard a bugle and stepped off the logging road about 100' to overlook a valley and see if I could see them against the fresh snow. It was too late to shoot, but I thought it may give me an idea of what the herd was doing for dawn. I only looked for about a minute and walked back to the old road out. Right on top of my track was a big cougar foot. The sun was down, dark timber on both sides for the next two miles, and I'm alone. That will raise the hair on the back of your neck... I repeated the same thing about 1/4 mile later by walking out of the timber into an aspen stand. I came back in and bingo, his tracks were all over mine... I shined my light but no eyes. The logging road made a 90 through an old clear cut before heading into a mile of really thick timber. I did the 90 and got down about 70 yards up the trail, next to a deadfall. I waited there to see what he was up to. Within 5 minutes a dark shadow came up the road. It hesitated at the bend and made a couple false starts in my direction, then backed up and continued straight along the break in the direction of the last bugle. I was glad to see him move along. That was one of those hunting trips that you never forget. lol

No sightings and no dead deer this year, so I believe you are right. It was exciting and I was happy to see one at my farm. I'd like to see another one out there.

I saw a one on my farm in southern Jefferson Co. last fall while bush hogging a field. It was a youngster; I could tell by the size and the coloring. I spoke with MDC but they had zero interest in coming out. That fall I found 13 dead deer on my property, none near water, so no blue tounge. One had it's back cut up. I asked MDC if they wanted to come out and confirm it but they declined. I've spent almost my entire career working outdoors in British Columbia, Montana, Wyoming, Nevada, New Mexico, and Arizona. I know what a cougar is when I see one. They have watched me working, stalked me while I was elk hunting, and I have sat and watched them in the desert with a spotting scope. My local agent who has been helping me with restoring the quail population believed me and asked the MDC cougar expert to come out. She pointed out my experience with them, the deer carcass that they could look at, and the hair I found in a barbwire fence. No interest. The boss said the last time he went out, it turned out to be a 40lb. red tabby cat.... Another guy said he believed that maybe it could have been a cougar traveling through but "doubted it". He said it was possible that young males were coming down the Missouri River corridor and expanding their range. I mentioned that I believed there was a breeding female out at the farm and all interest from MDC immediately went away. I believe they don't want to acknowledge them.....

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