Cougar killed in Muskoka, anyone ever seen one around here?

[Guest cstclair]

Heard yesterday that a cougar was shot by Ontario police. Sad to know and hear because the species has been extinct since 1884. There have been thousands of reported sightings over the years but this was the most confirmed.

Has anyone had a encounter with a cougar around here?

[fisherdude 69]

I believe there's multiple around, I'm pretty sure I saw one jump the rd up just past hawkeeye n have heard of multiple other sightings around there, Dawson road and shebandowan area.

[eddylives 99]

Two winters ago I saw one cross the hwy just west of Shabaqua on 17 while doing snow removal in the middle of the day. It jumped up a rock cut that was quite impressive

I have also heard of possible sightings all over NWO over the years.

[Guest Smack Um]

Yeah heard about but not seen...nothing like a dead one though after all that is indisputable eh!

Burden of proof.... http://www.torontosun.com/2012/07/09/ontario-cops-kill-cougar

[NWO 23]

If cougars can survive man's sprawl, I am re-thinking my stance on Bigfoot.

I've seen big, hairy, smelly ape looking things in the bush, and none of my friends were even near me.

[Pro fisherman-Stud Muffin 420]

yup i have seen 2. 1 near ignace and another near longlac. and a trapper friend got one 2 or 3 years ago in boreal. not 100% these were cougars but big cats anyways

[Guest clipper]

yup twice....first time was off camp 45 road in the winter 5 yrs back, also seen one on around 40 km's up Black sturgeon rd from the Hurkett side teo summers ago. This one was only about 60 ft from my truck, it walked across the road taking it's time, got a great look at it.......I wanted to snag a picture of it, but where was my camera?...in the camper of course!.

[levi64 72]

I'd rather not have them .

[Guest geoff_seth]

It's the only thing I haven't seen in Tbay. I have seen unmistakable tracks in my backyard (Dawson Road Area) but no glimpses. My grandpa saw one while cross country skiing at Trobridge falls. Deer ran in front of him followed by the cougar. That was like 25 years ago I believe.

[Resource Pimp 60]

It appears the cougar was a "de-clawed" escape.
/>http://www.guelphmercury.com/news/canada/article/758016--cougar-killed-by-opp-likely-an-escaped-captive-animal

My wife and I seen a cougar cross hwy 586 here about 10 years ago.

[Bear 77]

Last time I was in Thunder Bay, I met my brothers for a beer at the Airlane, saw lots of cougars there.

Bear

[Guest Eye Guy]

Last time I was in Thunder Bay, I met my brothers for a beer at the Airlane, saw lots of cougars there.

Bear

lol...I was going to say I haven't seen any since Scuttlebutts colsed.

[Guest cstclair]

I thought madhouse is a cougar friendly place

Are there bob cats around here? I lived in kananaskis, Alberta for a year and there were sightings on a monthly basis out there. Saw one once standing on a rock cut. I'm sure there has to be a few left in North Ontario.

[Guest BLR-WSM]

I have pics of a bobcat in my yard from 2-3 yrs ago, a taxidermist told me it looked like a healthy male due to it's size. I posted it on OTB as a Lynx but was quickly corrected by a few members. Getting too close for comfort to the kids swing set....don't think my american cooker would have held him off long! Haven't seen one since but have seen many Lynx, they look very similar but have a few disticnt differences. bobcat tip of tail are white - lynx tip of tail all black, they tend to be a little more spotted than a lynx as well also ; back of hind leg on bobcat is black - lynx is not black. I remember thinking wow is this Lynx ever reddish orange and one of the members said that also was a difference between the 2.

[brookiebuster 117]

Cool picture!

[McGinnis_Fishing 49]

Very cool pictures! I always thought a bob cat was another name for a lynx.

[Guest Smack Um]

I have pics of a bobcat in my yard from 2-3 yrs ago, a taxidermist told me it looked like a healthy male due to it's size. I posted it on OTB as a Lynx but was quickly corrected by a few members. Getting too close for comfort to the kids swing set....don't think my american cooker would have held him off long! Haven't seen one since but have seen many Lynx, they look very similar but have a few disticnt differences. bobcat tip of tail are white - lynx tip of tail all black, they tend to be a little more spotted than a lynx as well also ; back of hind leg on bobcat is black - lynx is not black. I remember thinking wow is this Lynx ever reddish orange and one of the members said that also was a difference between the 2.

Thanks for sharing what looks like a Bob Cat I saw a Racoon in my backyard too what's goin on man!

[fisherdude 69]

There's bin the odd raccoon around for years n years, my dad had a baby one come right up to him while fishin on the neebing/macintyre floodway years ago. Theyve bin known to hitch rides on the transports n what not from the south.

[Guest Smack Um]

There's bin the odd raccoon around for years n years, my dad had a baby one come right up to him while fishin on the neebing/macintyre floodway years ago. Theyve bin known to hitch rides on the transports n what not from the south.

Thanks man I saw a whole wack of racoon at Middle Falls on Pigeon River a couple years ago thought I was Hallucinating!

[Guest cstclair]

I have seen more raccoons on the floodway this year too. Most of the time it was skunks. Those are some great pics btw. How much bigger is a bob cat than a house cat?

[mad scientist 140]

I always thought a bob cat was another name for a lynx.

http://www.differencebetween.net/science/nature/difference-between-lynx-and-bobcat/

[mad scientist 140]

the species has been extinct since 1884. There have been thousands of reported sightings over the years but this was the most confirmed.

"Extinct" means it doesn't exist anywhere. "Extirpated" means it's thought to no longer exist in a certain area (e.g. Ontario). Nonetheless, the question is not whether there are cougars in Ontario (the picture of the dead one obviously proves that there are), but whether the cougars that are out there are escaped pets, have moved in from western North America, or are bona fide remnants of the eastern sub-species of cougar that was once found in Ontario. Despite the thousands of sightings (not sure about thousands, but hundreds anyway) all over Ontario, there is very little concrete proof that these animals exist in the wild... And while it is recognized that you will never convince someone who has reported a cougar that what they saw was something other than a cougar, most reports turn out to be something else - lynx, tawny-coloured wolves, even housecats.

However, there has been enough compelling evidence in recent years that the status of eastern cougars in Ontario was officially changed from 'extirpated' to 'endangered' in 2008: http://www.rom.on.ca/ontario/risk.php?doc_type=fact&id=135〈=en

Wikipedia gives a pretty good overview of the debate about eastern cougars and what their status is in North America: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Cougar

[Castnblast 86]

OMNR does acknowledge and publicly communicate the fact that the eastern cougar is endangered, and does exist in NWO.

The cougar shot in Huntsville was declawed, and ...

"The attack occurred Saturday night in Utterson, southwest of Huntsville, at a home across the road from Guha’s Tiger and Lion Farm, an exotic cats menagerie." - hello.

IMO dead cat in Southern Ontario proves that:

1 - some cougars do exist in locations where humans are selfish enough to captivate them,

2 - we as a race are stupid enough to pull their claws out

3 - that cats are smart enough to escape

4 - and hungry enough to eat dogs.

I'm guessing that most (not all) sightings that occur in NWO are actually deer or wolves, that are reported by people who "really want to see a cougar in NWO."

I recall an article a few years ago from the Kenora ??? that reported that some cat crap in the area was confirmed as cougar scat.

Anyway, here's hoping that a healthy population can re-establish itself into our ecosystem.

Just another reason why NWO is a great place to live!

[Red_Nuck 5]

I saw one on the road to Scotch Lake (near Ignace) a few years ago....thought it was a deer laying on the road at first, then it got up and took off as we got closer....there was no mistaking the tail, definitely a cougar!

[Croat 28]

Released this guy from flood way a week ago on mission island tail was raw like he chewed all the fur off.Neighbour live trapped him.I usually get two skunks and a woodchuck everyyear but i use conibear or leg hold