Tough way to go out. Mountain lion attack

Sad story.
Colofornia is voting this fall to stop hunting the cats, ie cougar, bobcat and lynx. All the Californians and New Yorkers who have moved here have brought their stupid ideas with them. They think they know better how to manage wildlife than the educated professionals! I guess next they will perform their own surgeries because they are obviously smarter than the trained doctors!
Colorado use to be a great state to live in, but no more! Only wish I could move. Stupid new gun laws. Stupid new wildlife laws. Most everything here is managed by ignorant fools. A sad place to end my outdoor life in.

dnb86 said:

I hope you're correct lol my conspiracy brain thinks the liberals are pushing for more predators to eventually lower the deer population to give them an excuse to close big game hunting……sounds are little nuts but hey it is California we're talking about here

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marksman1941 said:

It's fun to blame liberals for everything, but that's not the only cause of this. In oregon we have over the counter lion tags, 2 a year if you want them, and lions are still everywhere. Humans constantly expand and encroach on wildlife borders, while wildlife spreads and tries to find its own territory. In the case of a lion that has a large territory, and often births 2 cubs, they spread pretty fast. We've had them come out of the hills and kill domestic dogs and goats in the back yard more than once; it's part of living on the edge of expanding humanity.

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Dnb86, that is not a conspiracy, it is happening in WA. As well. People on fish and game comition has even stated this and want to bring back the Grizzly to expedite.

Marksman, if you are not allowed to hunt with Hounds then there is no way you will ever be able to hunt/kill enough to have any kind of effective management.

The sad thing about it is that the squeaky wheel gets the Greece. And most of us hunters just want to be left alone and not be bothered. " live and let live" . Unfortunately that consept does not exist anymore. WE NEED TO BE MORE INVOLVED. Be the squeaky wheel! Join Howell for wildlife and other organizations in your state and also be aware of what is happening in other states and add your voice there as well.
For God's sake.. stop fighting among ourselves. If you don't like trapping then don't do it but leave it alone. If you don't like bowhunting don't do it but leave it for those that do. Live and let live amongst our ranks but join the fight to not loose anymore than we already have..... sorry for the rant...
I will now go to "Howl for wildlife and see where I can put my voice to help be heard.

ridgewalker said:

Sad story.
Colofornia is voting this fall to stop hunting the cats, ie cougar, bobcat and lynx. All the Californians and New Yorkers who have moved here have brought their stupid ideas with them. They think they know better how to manage wildlife than the educated professionals! I guess next they will perform their own surgeries because they are obviously smarter than the trained doctors!
Colorado use to be a great state to live in, but no more! Only wish I could move. Stupid new gun laws. Stupid new wildlife laws. Most everything here is managed by ignorant fools. A sad place to end my outdoor life in.

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Ok…..next crazy conspiracy. So many liberals from California left the golden state and infest and plague other states with ideology's that don't fit that particular states life style to the point where California becomes the new conservative state to live and a hunters paradise…….wheres my foil hat im starting to scare myself

dnb86 said:

Ok…..next crazy conspiracy. So many liberals from California left the golden state and infest and plague other states with ideology's that don't fit that particular states life style to the point where California becomes the new conservative state to live and a hunters paradise…….wheres my foil hat im starting to scare myself

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Hahahaha outside the big cities, it already is that way. I think all these tech people being able to start working from home during Covid, and thus being able to move elsewhere, certainly didn't help any of the western states with CA liberals flooding to them.

I grew up in California before I escaped. Lifetime shooter/hunter multigenerational.
You can't carry when you hike in the south so essentially unarmed. Nuts. Wife and I were stalked by a mountain lion while hiking. Not much you can do. Not all Californians that escaped being their Cali ways with them.
Now have elk and deer in my backyard at times. Also have a cougar tag since I can.
Oregon is a shall issue state so you can get a permit. I certainly did as well as suppressors to save my hearing.
Unfortunately, California is lost. Not my fault, but I was outnumbered.

Huntnful said:

Hahahaha outside the big cities, it already is that way. I think all these tech people being able to start working from home during Covid, and thus being able to move elsewhere, certainly didn't help any of the western states with CA liberals flooding to them.

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This is probably true. We've seen prices here in Oregon/ Idaho home skyrocket. But I've also noticed that midwestern states and some of the cheaper east coast state home prices rising.

This is certainly a tragedy. The big ranch I hunt in Mexico has a year-round mountain lion extermination program, hunting and trapping, and their population of elk, mule deer and desert bighorn sheep are thriving. Having been within a few tens of yards of a big female and her cub I can honestly say they are the scariest animals I've been around...I carry dude wipes and a pistola when I'm in the backcountry of the Carmen Mts.

There will be a ballot initiative in Colorado seeking to ban "trophy hunting" of cat species.


It is just a step toward banning hunting.

Biologists and game agencies should manage wildlife and not ballot biology.

Its a sad story.Im surprised them being outdoorsman, not armed some how.I know of probably 1/2 dozen or more cases of friends being stalked or attacked.Right here where I live, but where in cat country.Buddy and I where bowhunting in ID,he cow called a cat in that got to 9 yrds, then laid its ears back ,crouching low.Thats when he sent a arrow at it.We saw a warden few days later and informed him.He said he had lot bigger problems then to go look for a maybe wounded cat.On way home my wife informed me, that my then 12 year old son and friend where stalked by a cat, behind my place.They where bow hunting ,hiking.He rattled cat in,wouldnt scare off, he shot at it with bow.Turns out he missed, then on skid row it approached again, my son then shot it in face with a Benjamin 22 pellet gun that use to be mine .Guy I worked with was hunting deer, walking distance from his house, that's on a small ridge in country 3-4 miles from .He heard something and a cat was full charge.He spun and shot from hip, killing 155# male.This was a tough ol guy that I built homes with, big ol dip in his lip and spent his early years dropping monster trees straight into ocean in AK,where it was so steep he had to spring board them.That buddy in first part got stalked again, but on year he cut track deer hunting and stalked one down himself, as you can get over counter general tag here.I guy my mason worked with shot one off his backpack, almost shooting himself.While back I had one circle me, I yelled to scare it off,raising arms etc.Its snarled at me, from 50 yrds,then dropped downwind came at me. This season at end which is late muzzle loader, I was on ridge and cut small cat track, later down ridge mile further cut a large cat track.I ran into a cat hunter up there later, they had taken 9 cats for season.He expressed where he had general been running's good sized portion of our area and said there where a 100 cats in that area.I had been hunting a special draw area, bow not known for bears.So I was saving the weight and not packing.Then I started seeing cat tracks, and deer parts way to often. I ended up stuffing my normal EDC pistol in pack web as I had no holster, on a lanyard.This where later I had run in.Cats aren't always prone to a warning, bears much more so.

A hunting club I belonged to in Calif had two women members and on two occasions my friend saw mountain lions stalking them while they were deer hunting and had to scare them off. we believe the cats selected the women to attempt to attack because they were smaller in stature.

Have read the majority of the responses to this thread & many make valid points. Yes, what happened to these two young men is tragic & sad. Condolences to the family, as a parent one of my worst fears is having to bury my child. Pray that day never becomes a reality.

Moving forward, it is extremely important to teach our children as much as we can at an early age about the wonders of Gods Country & the harsh realities that mother nature presents. This is also true about wondering around in the concrete jungle. Being aware of what is happening around us at all times is part of staying safe in this world. It is cold harsh world we live in, the second we let our guard down is the opportunity the devil needs to inflict harm on us. The Federal & State governments have put restrictions on hunting predators but they can not take our ability to defend or protect ourselves & others against predators 2 legged, 4 legged, etc. In regards to being attacked by wildlife, we have to understand that this is a reality when we step into the wild. The more we frequent the wild, the higher the chance of an attack happening gets. Knowing human & animal behavior can & will prevent injury & death. Knowing when to exit stage left versus dropping the hammer on any threat reduces our risk of injury, death & or prosecution from the authorities. Doing some due diligence before going into the world can ease the latter part of my previous statement. Carry a weapon without a permit or license is legal in many states. However, carrying a weapon with a permit or license shows due diligence & effort that we have gone through the necessary steps to be granted said paperwork. Investing in insurance that will protect us against wrongful arrest or judgement by the law is also a good idea. Understanding rules of engagement can & will keep most of us law abiding citizens out of reach from the long arm of the law. Just because we can carry a weapon legally does not mean we have the upper hand in any situation where lethal force would be justifiable. Meaning, lethal force should always be our last resort & all of the other options to avoid having to use lethal force have been exhausted. This principle applies to having to dispatch a wild animal in the woods. Never a bad idea to keep a bear, mountain lion, wolf, etc tag in our pocket when traipsing around the woods. Much like a permit to carry a firearm legally, having these tags in our possession shows due diligence in the event we have to exercise our right to protect & defend life.

Although I disagree with the idea of banning hunting Mountain Lions, Wolves, Bears, Bobcats, etc. Blaming a political group is a knee jerk reaction. At the end of the day, we control our own destiny when we walk out into the world on any given day. Giving authority or power to any entity other than God & Jesus is counter productive.

Keep Calm & Carry On

dnb86 said:

Yup unfortunately this is only gonna get worse considering the wolf packs are growing out here as well. The predator management in California is a freaking joke. If I were a betting man I'm guessing the grizzlies will get reintroduced to California again

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Since banned from hunting in 1992 ( was 1972) I believe, Mt. Lions have no fear of humans and have attacked and killed others in Ca.. I know, I lived there for many years. Just like grizzlies here, stopped hunting in 1975 and listed endangered. They have no fear of people either. The game and fish has nothing to do with either. They want them hunted. The Mt. Lion moratorium was a proposition passed by the vote of the people. Years later they tried a vote again . It almost passed to hunt. The grizzly is a Fed issue by the USFW. Wyoming, Montana and Idaho want them state managed and limited hunting. You have a dictator for Gov. in Ca.. He wants to ban bobcat hunting. By executive order. Next coyotes. They don't want hunters to control wildlife. You know the politics... You have wolves now. They are protected. They have thought about re introducing grizzlies but think not possible. Washington now wants to put grizzlies in the Cascades. Colorado got Oregon's problem wolves. Hopefully they'll cross into Wyoming so they can be shot on site with no license or tag like a coyote. I could go on, especially about Kommiefornia.

Hence, one of the reasons I am always wearing a sidearm even on short hikes. My wife likes to "wander" and explore when we are out, but she rarely wears her sidearm. Always states, "You have yours." Often, I must remind her how many cats and bears live in our area, and how sudden a cat can appear and without warning.

When I lived in the Four Corners area, it had the highest population of mtn lions in the country, and it was common for them to come into populated areas and be found up city trees and even light poles. I still remember the summer a small child was taken off a trail at Mesa Verde. Dogs and house cats vanished all the time, and one woman had a lion come through her doggie door and into her house.