1 dead, 1 injured in cougar attack

[gpburdelljr]

2 surprised humans against a hungry, wild animal, that's not going to end well no matter how tough you are. Could you and a buddy fight off a 100lb Olympic boxer? Nope. Add claws and teeth, you're just hoping the cat mistook you for a deer and leaves you wounded.

Exactly. Any animal that Is known to prey on animals as big as a moose, or elk, can jump up to 18 feet vertically, and 20 to 40 feet horizontally, is not to be taken lightly.

[JPritch]

Could you and a buddy fight off a 100lb Olympic boxer? Nope.

Yes, easily, by myself. Like beating up a skilled 6th grader. No sweat.

[RockDoc]

This may have been the first death by cougar in 94 years, but there are hundreds of 'incidents' and sightings in WA State just in the last year. See the map.

http://wdfw.maps.arcgis.com/home/web...68ddd88c88e4ce

[ghostman74]

There are lots of cougars in Washington.

I’m more scared of the Cougars at Washington St. U. Have you seen those animals? #gohuskies

In all seriousness, in my mind’s eye everything points back to ancient principles about being one with nature. Most folks take that as hugging trees. I take it as respecting the ecosystem, understanding the behavior of animals, and not making myself a target for animals that hunt like cougars. This is not meant to judge those that were attacked. It is more of a warning for the rest of us: cougars generally stalk their prey. Being aware of that should inform how we hike. Pause every once in a while... say every 500-1000m. Be still. Be quiet. Don’t be paranoid or alarmed. Learn how to determine if there is there something stalking you.

It took me years to learn and the skills quickly fade. Guess I need to get into the woods more often.



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[Tundracamper]

I’m more scared of the Cougars at Washington St. U. Have you seen those animals? #gohuskies

In all seriousness, in my mind’s eye everything points back to ancient principles about being one with nature. Most folks take that as hugging trees. I take it as respecting the ecosystem, understanding the behavior of animals, and not making myself a target for animals that hunt like cougars. This is not meant to judge those that were attacked. It is more of a warning for the rest of us: cougars generally stalk their prey. Being aware of that should inform how we hike. Pause every once in a while... say every 500-1000m. Be still. Be quiet. Don’t be paranoid or alarmed. Learn how to determine if there is there something stalking you.

It took me years to learn and the skills quickly fade. Guess I need to get into the woods more often.

Uh, if you want to ensure you don’t get attacked by a cougar, then DON’T go into the woods. Everyday life is full of risks. Things happen.

[Berserker]

I don't normally make these kind of comments because I wasn't there and don't know all the facts of the incident, but why in the heck did the one guy take off and ride 2 miles away and then call for help? I can't say that I'd be a hero in that situation either, but if my buddy was being attacked I'd at least have grabbed the nearest big stick and put up a fight.

I was gonna stay off this thread going forward, but just had to say a couple more things after all of my previous comments that could have been misconstrued as being non-sympathetic to the victims. I know it’s the internet where people say dumb crap all the time and it probably doesn’t matter, but that's not how I roll and my conscience wouldn’t let this one go without me making this final statement.

It’s easy to read a story and come to a quick conclusion (thus why I quoted myself), and that’s what I did. I saw that 2 men had been attacked by a cougar and wondered why the heck they didn’t try to fight it off. My natural bias when I read something like this is to assume that if the story stated 2 male mountain bikers were attacked, then they must have been at least average sized athletically built males. I didn’t even stop to think that it could be two small men, two out-of-shape casual bikers, etc. I did some research on the victims (i.e. just by Googling around), and what I found provides some background that may help explain how this incident escalated to the point that it did.

I don’t want to publish personal details of the victims on here, so ya’ll can dig that up on your own. I simply wanted to point out my error in coming to a quick conclusion. As with anything reported in the news humans process the information by automatically applying our own inherent biases, and one must always consider all the facts before coming to a conclusion. I jumped into this thread before I had gathered all the information, and as I stated in my first post I normally just stay out of this stuff. So going forward I think I’ll likely take my own advice on these types of threads and steer clear of posting my thoughts.

Oh yeah, and I also wanted to say that I have always read that if you see a cougar it’s already too late to stop the attack, as apparently you don’t see them until their pouncing on their prey. So despite trying to sound like a “manly man” in some of my previous posts I do realize an incident like this could happen to anyone with similar results.

[Runner2017]

It's well documented that young animals have long-term memories of very stressful events, such as loss of mother to hunters. And they can revenge years later.

[MuddyWaters]

Cougars tend to attack from behind and they go for the neck for quick kill. Predators are all about sneak attacks and lowest energy expenditure. The fact that you have a big backpack and a cat cannot see your neck from behind actually may discourage them. Also protect you if face down.

[gpburdelljr]

It's well documented that young animals have long-term memories of very stressful events, such as loss of mother to hunters. And they can revenge years later.

Documented where?

[Sarcasm the elf]

Documented where?

Disney’s Bambi.

[Sarcasm the elf]

It's well documented that young animals have long-term memories of very stressful events, such as loss of mother to hunters. And they can revenge years later.

Because that’s totally more plausable than the obvious explanation that this was simply a case of an emaciated Cougar that was desperately looking for a meal.

[devoidapop]

Documented where?

Disney’s Bambi.

Don't forget Jaws IV

[Runner2017]

Documented where?

It was well documented in academic journals by the western anthropologists that went to study primitive tribes in Asia, Africa and Australia before 1980s.

[cmoulder]

I'd ask these guys for advice.

[saltysack]

I'd ask these guys for advice.

Those guys must need a wheelborrow to get around....serious balls!!!!!!!!


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[gpburdelljr]

It was well documented in academic journals by the western anthropologists that went to study primitive tribes in Asia, Africa and Australia before 1980s.

How about some specific references.

[Fredt4]

As it was stated before, I wasn't there and I can't know enough about the situation to properly comment on it. But as in all incidents reported my opinion is as valid as the next person's. I believe the guy should have attacked the cougar to save his buddy. It may have been in vain but it would probably have been easier to live (or die) having done so. I can't say what I would have done as I wasn't there.