Never make the animal feel trapped, or turn and run. And if you happen to encounter a cougar, make yourself appear large, keep eye contact, and back away. Don’t leave kids or pets unattended, especially at dusk or dawn. If you head out for walks in the woods, travel in adult-heavy groups, make noise, and keep dogs leashed. Cougars may see small dogs and children as prey because both are prone to sudden, erratic movements. In Ontario, for example, there are only “small amounts of physical evidence” to even confirm the existence of wild cougars, says Jolanta Kowalski of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. “I hike and mountain bike all the time, and I’ve never seen a cougar,” says de Ruyter. If it is, rest assured, the cougar will make it its business to avoid you. “We don’t have enough information to confirm that it really is a cougar,” says de Ruyter. Or some other boring animal dragging…something boring. Or it could have been a dog dragging a leash. Or, he says, “it could have been a cougar dragging something that it killed.” In deep snow, sure, you could see tail drag marks. “When they walk around, they keep their claws retracted,” says de Ruyter. Should I be concerned?-Tara Berical, via emailīased on the size of the paw prints, it sounds like it could be a cougar, says Nick de Ruyter with WildSmart in Canmore, Alta. The conservation officer seems to think it’s a dog dragging a leash. The prints in the snow are about 3½ by 3½ inches, and there are tail drag marks with them. I’m almost sure that I have a cougar visiting my property.
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