hi...
i saw your name in a newspaper report on cougar sightings in the region.
here's the thing: i don't have enough evidence to bring this to a police department or animal control or something. but, the mere premise of a cougar setting up in the middle of a city would be remarkable from a behavioural perspective. and, it's obviously of safety concerns, nonetheless.
i've been seeing various signs for months. large tracks through the snow (i didn't take pictures), glimpses out of the side of my eye, apparent movement in bushes, etc. it's easy to write these things off as mind tricks. and i do in fact have a history of mental illness.
but, i think i may have spotted some cubs this morning around marion street, just south of wyandotte. certainly, i've never heard a house cat make the "raaaaawr" sound i heard out of a small cat that reacted as soon as it saw me. feral cats don't generally react to people at all, in my experience. to get "raaaaawr"-ed at like that by a small cat was something i've never experienced before.
now, i didn't stick around to get a good look - i know i don't want to get between a cougar and it's cubs. and i wasn't wearing my glasses. but (from a distance, with weak vision) they looked like small, muscular, cream coloured house cats. maybe they were just that. but it's the behaviour that was unnerving to me, combined with other weak evidence.
cubs in the city? i know it's remarkable, but we know coyotes are doing this. and i know there's been an increase in sightings in the region lately.
however, i haven't seen a decrease in feral cats in the region lately. that's really what i've been looking for before i decided to make a call to an enforcement agency.
it's one thing to think you thought you saw a mountain lion. it's another to think you thought you see mountain lion cubs. i can't bring this to animal control, but i'd never forgive myself if i sat on this, wrote it off as mind tricks and then learned some kid down the street got taken. so, i think bringing it to the attention of somebody that can make a better scientific assessment is the best idea....
jessica