Im in shock right now

[microchick]

Well these folks are beggin to differ with your nighbor:

https://www.statesman.com/news/20180524/are-there-black-bears-in-central-texas

When they shot the cougar near us they were saying that there were no breeding pairs of cougar in Missouri in spite of Amish farmers repeatedly telling them that they were seeing females leading cubs on their property in our area.

Recently they admit that yes, there are cougar here and they are making a comeback as are black bear.

I think I remember reading early on that something had made short order of a stout closure mechanism on your door. Sounds like bear to me.

 

[Folly's place]

Here there are occasional reports of solitary cougar and black bears, not all confirmed. I wouldn't be shocked to find out that at least sometimes they will be traveling through here. Good reasons to be careful out there!
Likely stray dogs are more of a risk here though; walking alone in the woods has lost it's appeal, I'm getting wimpier over time! Cougars scare me way more than the black bears.
Mary

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Thats what ive been thinking while looking at it again. But by the shape of the smaller im thinking its a cub. I didnt even notice the smaller one when I took that picture

I see four prints in that pic.

 

[docdubz]

I see four prints in that pic.

Yea the more I look at that pic the more im certain its a mountain lion. I didnt even notice the big one that isnt near my foot.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Supposedly no bears but when I first took ownership of my property there were tracks that looked like bear and when I asked my neighbors they said "the guy that owned the property used to walk with no shoes on thats gotta be it theres no bear here"

Nobody could mistake a BARE human footprint for a BEAR track.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Yea the more I look at that pic the more im certain its a mountain lion. I didnt even notice the big one that isnt near my foot.

I agree. The central pad on a canid track is deep and heart shaped; on a cat it is flat and wide like what you see in the mud there. Also, a cat's two central pads are angled and a dog's are level.

 

[microchick]

I agree. The central pad on a canid track is deep and heart shaped; on a cat it is flat and wide like what you see in the mud there. Also, a cat's two central pads are angled and a dog's are level.

Blue, are you all dealing with black bear and cougar where you are?

The latest MODOC report have bear sightings as close to us (Macon County) one county away.

The weird thing we are hearing now is that an Amish farmer that harvests our hay for us swears that he saw a grey wolf near his barn early one morning. I asked if he could have seen a big yote and the neighbor who has the farm between ours and the Amish man in question and he said, no, Mose knows his animals and if he said he saw a wolf, he saw a wolf.

Great Cougars and Black bears and wolfs, oh my!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Blue, are you all dealing with black bear and cougar where you are?

The latest MODOC report have bear sightings as close to us (Macon County) one county away.

The weird thing we are hearing now is that an Amish farmer that harvests our hay for us swears that he saw a grey wolf near his barn early one morning. I asked if he could have seen a big yote and the neighbor who has the farm between ours and the Amish man in question and he said, no, Mose knows his animals and if he said he saw a wolf, he saw a wolf.

Great Cougars and Black bears and wolfs, oh my!

No, not to my knowledge. There was a report of a cougar not too far from here a year or so ago, but it seems to have been an isolated incident. We hear coyotes from time to time but that's all. My little Gracie chased off three of them one afternoon several years back and we haven't seen any since. Gone for easier pickings, I suppose. They did then try to lure her, but she came back when I hollered at her, thank goodness!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

The only confirmed sighting I can find for a cougar in Carter county was in 1994, a small female was shot by a couple of raccoon hunters.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Saw a show last night on cougars did not know they are social cats will hunt together never realized how social