Help Rescue Two Cougars

Freddy & Sassy have witnessed the worst and need you now!

Freddy

If only they could speak to us in a language that we understand.  Then we might know the horrors they have survived and be more inclined to protect others from enduring their fate.

I’ll share with you what I do know and hope that will inspire you to help these cougars and to do all you can to end the trade in exotic cats.

Back in the 90s, farmers Al and Kathy Abell, decided to start a breeding facility called Cougar Bluff Enterprises. They set up cages in their back yard in Elizabethtown, IL and filled them with a couple of cougars (Freddy & Sassy) a lion cub named Simba, some wolves and wolf hybrids. It was their plan to breed and sell and be surrounded by the kinds of wild animals they loved. The more they saw of what breeders and dealers were doing to animals, like the former owner who had beaten Sassy with a shovel, the more they realized that there was just no good reason to be breeding and selling exotics, so they never bred the big cats.

Having raised Simba the lion from a cub, they may have been complacent about the dangers of such interactions. Simba wasn’t even full grown before killing Al Abel. On that tragic day, Feb. 12, 2004 Kathy Abel came home to find the lion on the front porch of their home, her dog dead in the yard and no sign of her husband.

Sheriff’s deputies arrived on the scene as dark was closing in and the lion was on the edge of the 277,000 ac Shawnee National Forest. Kathy could not locate darts for her dart gun and the deputies were ordered to shoot Simba the lion rather than risk him killing someone in the park. It wasn’t until after Simba, body riddled by bullets, lay dying that Kathy discovered her husband dead on the floor of Simba’s cage. It had only taken one bite to the leg to cause him to bleed to death.

Fast forward six years and on Nov. 8, 2010 Chris Poole, of Big Cat Rescue came across a Facebook post saying that Kathy Abell had killed herself and left two cougars and an array of other domestic pets and farm animals with no one for miles around to care for them. We responded right away that we would come get the two cougars, Freddy and Sassy. It took a long 9 days to get the health certificate and import permit and to wait for Kathy’s family to bury her before we would be allowed to arrive on the scene. Meanwhile, Robin Parks, Field Volunteer for the Mountain Lion Foundation had coordinated with Kathy’s sister Kimberly Rapp and a local rehabber, Bev Shofstall to insure that the cats were being fed and cared for.

Sassy

Big Cat Rescuers; President, Jamie Veronica Murdock, Operations Manager, Gale Ingham and Chris Poole hit the road on Nov. 17th driving straight through the night to Cave In Rock, IL which was the nearest lodge to the cougars. While en-route, Bev the rehabber emailed asking us to hurry as she wasn’t sure Freddy, the 14 year old and very frail cougar, could make it another day. Rescuers made the trip in record time but arrived well after dark. They coordinated with Kimberly Rapp to pick up the cats at first light on the morning of the 18th.

This is where YOU come in.

These cats have witnessed things that no one should ever have to see. It is only through your help that we can make sure their last years are the best years of their lives. Your voice in letters to your lawmakers asking for a ban on the private possession of big cats, at CatLaws.com is what will stop the future breeding, trading and discarding of big cats that led to this sad situation. Your donations are what make it possible for us to commit to an emergency rescue like this.

To donate visit: http://www.bigcatrescue.org/donate.htm
For PayPal send to CustomerService@BigCatRescue.org
Read more about their tragic tale here: http://www.bigcatrescue.org/000news/0articlesbybcr/2010cougarrescue.htm

Is South Dakota killing too many lions?

A report from the Black Hills Mountain Lion Foundation after their September 18th educational seminar “Mountain Lions in the Black Hills: Facts and Fiction” presented by wildlife biologist Dr. John Laundre.

By increasing hunting quotas the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks department may threaten the viability of the state’s mountain lion population, according to a wildlife biologist who has studied cougars for more than 20 years. Adjunct professor in the State University of New York at Oswego biology department, Dr. John Laundre was the keynote speaker at Mountain Lions in the Black Hills: Facts and Fiction, an educational seminar sponsored by the Black Hills Mountain Lion Foundation. Laundre labeled the agency’s lion statistics “not biologically honest” and warned that overhunting could have a devastating impact on the lion population and lead to a loss of its ecological functionality. GF & P plans to increase the total harvest from 40 to 45 and the female sub-quota from 25 to 30 as part of its proposed 2010-2015 mountain lion management plan. An additional season with a quota of five lions has been proposed for Custer state park. Laundre pointed out that GF & P’s estimate of approximately 250 cougars in the state is misleading because only about 160 would be adult animals and most of the immature cats will disperse to other areas. Because it is uncertain how many females are in the population and how many kittens survive each year the total number of lions may be considerably lower than GF & P estimates, Laundre said.

Dr. John Laundre holding two mountain lion kittens

The wildlife biologist, who also serves as vice-president of the Eastern Cougar Foundation, has conducted research on wolves and elk in Yellowstone National Park, cougar predation on mule deer in Idaho and pumas in the Chihuahuan desert. Laundre complimented GF & P for its “holistic guiding philosophy” regarding the return of mountain lions to the Black Hills and its progressive views on their role in ecosystems but urged the agency to rework its figures using a wider range of data.

Laundre explained how mountain lions and other top predators help restore the ecological integrity of forests. He said that the removal of large carnivores from the country’s eastern and southern forests have resulted in the disappearance of many varieties of both flora and fauna due to unchecked browsing by white-tailed deer. “Deer are instigating… the most massive change in forest habitat since uncontrolled logging in our early history,” the scientist said. “In some areas, the deer have cleared the woods of most of the plant varieties that once grew there. Lack of sufficient ground cover in turn leads to a decline in song birds that depend on the vegetation for nest building. Mountain lions and other large predators promote forest integrity not because they kill deer,” Laundre said, “but because of the effect they have on deer they don’t kill.” Cougars hunt by ambush and prefer areas where there is sufficient cover. Deer learn where lions are likely to prowl and tend to avoid those areas, which ensures the survival of plant species that the ungulates otherwise would eradicate.

Photo courtesy of the Mountain Lion Foundation

Laundre does not believe that it is necessary to cut lion numbers to preserve deer for human hunters. “Cougars just are not efficient enough as hunters to impact deer populations.” He estimated that predators and human hunters together typically remove about 12 per cent of the deer population every year, a tolerable reduction from which the cervines quickly recover. An avid deer hunter, Laundre said that sportsmen commonly blame predators, including cougars, when deer numbers are down, but heavy snowfalls are more likely to cause severe declines. He added that “hunting is not supposed to be like shopping at the supermarket.” It is a sport which involves elements of chance and skill.

Finally, the wildlife researcher said that although lions are powerful carnivores they rarely attack human beings. “It is more dangerous to walk the streets in any U. S. city at night than it is to hike or live in an area with mountain lions,” he said. Laundre presented slides depicting his work, including one in which he held three squirming cougar kittens. He related that during his years of research work he never was threatened by a wild cougar even when he snatched up and examined its babies.

The Black Hills Mountain Lion Foundation was created in 2003 after South Dakota removed the cougar from the state’s threatened species list and identified it as a big game animal. Our goals are to inform the public about mountain lion behavior and their importance to our ecosystem, help reduce human-lion conflicts, and fight for the preservation of these animals on their natural landscape. We support mountain lion management that is based on peer-reviewed science and encourage efforts to prevent habitat loss and fragmentation. For more information, email us at bhsdlions@yahoo.com or visit our website at www.blackhillslions.com.

In response to the New Mexico Department of Game & Fish “waging war on the State’s cougars,” CTAL partners WildEarth Guardians and Animal Protection of New Mexico have teamed up on a campaign to Protect New Mexico Cougars!

About the Group

Protect New Mexico’s Cougars is a coalition of conservation and animal organizations, outdoor recreationists, biologists, hunters, and concerned citizens, who are opposed to radical, unsustainable increases in state-sponsored cougar hunting in New Mexico.

Our coalition has been on the frontline demanding that cougars’ management be based on the best available science – but not on fear.  Most New Mexicans appreciate and value these rare wild cats.

We work to achieve both sustainable cougar populations and peaceful coexistence–through Cougar Smart education. Killing to reduce fears about future negative encounters is outdated and has no place in modern wildlife management.

Just a few highlights of the site include:

• information about the importance of protecting females and kittens
• safety tips and how to be Cougar Smart
• a PDF slideshow presentation
• submission form to send comments directly to the New Mexico Game & Fish Commission

For more information visit ProtectNMCougars.org

Here is a reposting of a letter to the editor submitted by OreCAT Director Jayne Miller to the OregonLive.com news site.  It was printed on September 6, 2010.

Living with cougars

Are the six cougars showing up on one Willamette Valley farm unreal? (“Cougars on the prowl in Oregon,” Aug. 31) It certainly seems so.

Photo courtesy of the Mountain Lion Foundation

When raised in the wild by their mother, cougars do not lounge around in the grass near humans, nor do they congregate in packs, nor do they leave their prey unburied. I know this because we had cougars on our family’s 7,000-acre Oregon cattle ranch, and I grew up around them.

Cougars can be and are domesticated in captivity by humans and display the same nature these six cougars displayed. Could these cougars have been domesticated? We will never know, because they were all shot.

Considering that cougar incidents have seemed to occur like clockwork as the Legislature has opened in recent years, maybe it’s time for some objective inquiry to look more deeply into these situations. There are other, broader questions, too. How many cougars are necessary for a balanced ecosystem? How many deer should we manufacture for the purpose of killing them?

Oregonians are innovative. Can’t we think of better management programs than just killing our wildlife to protect around livestock?

Before we make any decision about our cougars, let’s thoroughly answer these questions first.

JAYNE MILLER
Jefferson

September 30, 2010

Scott Raine, Chairman
Nevada Board of Wildlife Commissioners
1100 Valley Road
Reno, Nevada   89512

Regarding:   Predator problem?…or Wildlife Commission problem?

Dear Chairman Raine

Still suffering the effects of “predator fatigue”…a condition I acquired at your commission meeting last weekend where I’m sure the word “predator” was mentioned well over a hundred times by commission members…I shall nonetheless do my best to describe why, in my opinion, we have not “a predator problem” in Nevada but a “wildlife commission” problem.

While I fully understand that there is a general desire for greater mule deer numbers among sportsmen and the commission, the grossly apparent obsession with predators by several members of the commission  …blaming them as the cause for “low” numbers of deer…goes far beyond anything supportable by available information, looks mean-spirited and bigoted,  fatigues the listener, creates acrimony between the commission and its constituents and department personnel, takes valuable time and money away from other pressing wildlife issues, and does nothing to create a useful, working relationship among sportsmen, CABs, and others.  In short, it’s crazy!!

While you were correct in suggesting that I lack understanding about matters related to sportsmen and hunting issues when we were talking about the proposed black bear hunt on KNPR a few days ago, I do keep showing up at commission meetings…some 35 years after my first time…hoping to become educated about those topics you think I fail to appreciate.  (I suspect the predator “issue” is one example.)  Unfortunately, all I got from your last meeting was a headache, and no enlightenment.

So, I thought I’d present what I DO know about mule deer numbers, predator issues, and related items and see if there can be some discussion of facts, and not obsessions or mythology, as a way to move ahead.

• The best current summary of the status of mule deer in Nevada….which includes a very nice historical section, looking back 130 years at deer numbers and how they have fluctuated…is “Nevada’s Mule Deer”, a well-done monograph prepared by Tony Wasley, NDOW big game biologist, and printed by NDOW in 2004.  (It is available on NDOW’s web site.) This document looks at a host of factors which affect current mule deer numbers, including the role of predators, and concludes with this statement.  “We must actively protect existing mule deer habitat while we create and restore new mule deer habitat because the reality remains that as mule deer habitat goes, so goes the mule deer.”

• According to Mr. Wasley’s document, mule deer numbers in Nevada have exceeded 200,000 during two periods of time in the past 130 years.  The first was (roughly) 1945-1960; the second, briefer occasion was (approximately) 1985 – 1990.  Those two periods account for approximately 20 years out of the 130-year span presented in that document.  Alternatively, mule deer numbers were below 200,000 for 110 years out of 130 total years, or 85% of the time.  The number of years when deer numbers were at or below 100,000 appears to be about 70 years, or 54% of the time.

• According to the well-respected text, Mule and Black-tailed Deer of North America (1981, edited by Olof Wallmo), the decline of the mule deer population in Nevada, (following the “hey-days” of mule deer proliferation across the West during the 1950′s and early 1960′s) began in the early 60′s.  Information supplied by George Tsukamoto showed that mule deer numbers of 246,000 in Nevada in 1960 declined to 150,000 in 1970 (page 230).  To help interpret this decline, you’ll recall that I presented the Mule Deer Restoration Committee earlier this year with a copy of a paper by Guy Connolly, detailing the history of the use of Compound 1080 on public lands.  According to Connolly, Nevada had more bait stations deployed on public lands (over 2000) than any other western state during the early 1960′s….the very time when mule deer began their decline in this state and across the West.   The significance of this correlation is, of course, that coyotes were being killed in huge numbers  while simultaneously, deer numbers were rapidly declining, making it absurd to postulate a predator-related cause for the rapid and massive decline of mule deer in Nevada or across the West.

• During the past 10 years, large numbers of predators have been killed in Nevada (over 80,000 coyotes; over 2000 mountain lions) while mule deer numbers have declined by approximately 25,000 to a current, apparently stable number of just over 100,000 animals. During this same time period, the wildlife commission has developed and nurtured its predator obsession, the legislature passed AB 291, generating nearly $3 million to kill predators, and additional sportsmen’s dollars from the Heritage Fund have  been used to pursue this misguided obsession.

• Claims of the presence of a current “predator problem” lack substantiation.  For example, there is no current, reliable, believable, documented population estimate for coyotes in this state.  Claims that coyotes are present in abundance merit no more credence than claims of paucity.  The same is true for the mountain lion.  For sportsmen and commissioners to claim the former (abundance) and disregard the equally plausible latter (paucity) is to simply express an opinion….based on anecdote/mythology and/or personal bias…but with nothing more to back it up. To add complexity, I’m sure you’re aware of hypothetical calculations by biologists as to what it would take to significantly suppress coyote populations in an area….the killing of 75% of the coyotes in an area for 3-4 years running.   Therefore, without having a clue as to base population numbers, random killing of coyotes, no matter how vigorously pursued, seems useless and absurd.

• It is also true that population numbers for all of Nevada’s big game species (elk, pronghorn, bighorn, mountain goat), except for mule deer, are at recent historic high levels.  It is difficult to postulate a major predator problem, knowing that predators will turn to alternative prey items if mule deer are not available.  Yet, the high numbers of other game species show no such (predictable) effect.

• In a large, 5-year, $350,000 project to kill coyotes and mountain lions near Secret Pass to benefit mule deer which has recently been concluded,  my recollection is that about 2500 coyotes were killed, as well as several lions.  Yet, Tony Wasley, NDOW’s deer biologist, was unable to show any sustained benefit for mule deer that resulted in the addition of adult mule deer to the existing population. I’m sure we both recall Mr. Wasley’s excellent, credible analysis which was presented at your Mule Deer Restoration committee meeting in Elko earlier this year. His analysis stands unrebutted.

• To credibly assert the presence of a “predator problem”, it would need to be shown that, given a piece of habitat, mule deer occupying that habitat are in tip-top physical condition, adult mortality is low, fawn production is high, and a high density of predators exists as well.  This notion of carrying capacity, well-recognized  by wildlife biologists, defines the conditions under which one might assert the presence/absence of a “predator problem”.  A simple “low” doe/fawn ratio is ambiguous on its own, since such a ratio is more likely, in this state, to be related to poor habitat conditions than to predators.  It is well known that fawn production diminishes in the face of poor habitat.  There has been no showing by the commission or the department of a “predator problem” as defined in this specific biological manner.

• What does the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) Mule Deer Working Group have to say? In one of its sections, “The West that Was…No Longer Is”, the authors bemoan the glorious days of 50-60 years ago when mule deer were numerous all over the West.  The decline is, in their eyes, related to habitat issues (90% shrub diet in 1954; 80% herbaceous in 1994, per Ken Mayer).  Predators are described as “playing a shifting role”…whatever that means, and the authors do not credit predators with the decline.  (I’ve included a copy of this paper with this letter.)

• WAFWA’s Mule Deer Working Group document, “A Place for Predators” describes the complexities of the predator/prey relationship, a host of variables which need to be considered in defining a predator problem or declaring that one does/does not exist.  From a broad perspective, it states, “However, most of the environments where mule deer exist today have been altered by fire suppression, development, fragmentation of habitat and other factors.  In these habitats (most of the West), biologists believe predation does not cause declines in deer populations.” (I’ve included a copy of this paper with the letter.)

• To be sure I wasn’t missing something, I took a look at the WAFWA agenda for the July, 2010 Joint Directors/Commissioners meeting, held in Alaska.   (I’ve printed off a copy for you and included it with the letter.)  As you can see, topics included the Gulf oil spill, Sage Grouse, legal issues, recruitment of hunters and anglers, but nary a word about Nevada’s predator problem.

• To be doubly sure, I printed off a copy of the agenda for Mule Deer Working Group at the same Alaska meeting.  (Copy enclosed).   As you can see, of the 19 agenda items, there isn’t a single reference to Nevada’s predator problem, or a predator problem anywhere in the West for that matter.  Somehow, this pressing, urgent, relentless “predator problem” obsessed over by some members of the  commission, has not even made the radar screen anywhere.

By the way, I do have a question.  Once in a while, a commissioner or a sportsman will make mention of the need for a “balance” between predator and prey.  While that idea has a reasonable-sounding tone to it, I have yet to see where the line is drawn, or what the formula looks like.  The concept of “balance” would suggest, for example….so many of these, so many of those.   If that is true, I’d like to know how many coyotes I can expect per 10,000 deer, or how many lions as well.   And how will I know that the balance is being observed and respected, instead of simply being a meaningless utterance which precedes another request for more predators to be killed.

So, I’m back to where I started.  Which is it….a “predator problem” or a “wildlife commission” problem?  As far as I can see, it’s the latter.  Here’s my thimble-sized summary:

• It’s a pipe dream to think there’ll be 200,000 mule deer in this state anytime in the near or foreseeable future.
• Killing predators to try to achieve this pipe dream is…bottom line…destroying public property without any justification, and wasteful of all sorts of resources.
• It would be better to start looking at habitat improvement and whatever else is possible; better to start now than later.
• It is clearly time for the commission to try to mend some fences with the CABs and other constituents.  Acrimony is getting us nowhere.  Also, a new governor is coming to town……the implications should be obvious.

Let me know if I can help in some way.

Sincerely

Don Molde

Here is another photo taken at our fundraiser on Saturday, September 18th, 2010.

Julia Di Sieno and John Corbett

John Corbett and I were both bidding on this gorgeous African lion pendant, donated by POSH.  John later asked me to STOP bidding on it.  Of course I let him bid higher on the item, as I could no longer afford the price range it was headed for.  John bid highest on the pendant then he announced that he got it for me as a gift.  WOW!  He is a wonderful friend!  Here is a photo taken when he gave me the pendant.

I thought this might be a cute piece for the CTAL website… after all it’s a lion, and I am a leo!  Rahrrrrrrrr.

Julia J. Di Sieno
Executive Director
Animal Rescue Team, inc.
www.animalrescueteam.net

Take nothing but photographs. Leave nothing but footprints. Kill nothing but time.

For immediate release
September 23rd 2010
Contact: Julia J. DiSieno
Executive Director
Animal Rescue Team, Inc
(805) 234-3810

Emcee & Auctioneer John Palminteri and Animal Rescue Team Executive Director Julia DiSieno announcing the auction winners.

Local Wildlife Fundraiser a Smash Hit

Animal Rescue Team, Inc. held their fourth annual Wildlife Fundraiser last Saturday (September 18th 2010).

[See the original flier for the Fundraiser]

The event location and part of the food was donated by Manny’s Mexican Restaurant on Mission Drive in Solvang.

Guest enjoyed a live auction hosted by John Palminteri and a spectacular slide show of hundreds of animals rescued and successfully rehabilitated this year. The slide show was created by Animal Rescue Team Advisory Boardmember Arthur White.

Guests enjoying the silent auction with the help of Animal Rescue Team mascot, Romulus, an abused wolf-hybrid rescued and successfully rehabilitated by Ms DiSieno

Notable guests supporting the event were Pedro Nava, 35th District State Assemblyman, his wife Susan Jordon, singer Jim Messina, actor and singer, John Corbett, actress Bo Derek, 24th congressional hopeful Tim Allison, and Animal Rescue Team Co-Founder Michael Behrman, M.D.

Emily Jensen keeping guests entertained with her guitar.

Sponsors for the event included Jordano’s Inc., Arthur Earl Winery, Teri Romero and Emily Jensen.

All monies raise at this event will go to support the important work done by the Animal Rescue Team in the Santa Ynez Valley, California.

For more information about Animal Rescue Team Inc., wildlife care,
or to volunteer, go to:

www.animalrescueteam.net

Injured wildlife in the Santa Ynez Valley should be reported to the Animal Rescue Team’s Hotline at (805) 896-1859.

The following edition was emailed to Mountain Lion Foundation newsletter subscribers on Thursday, September 23rd.  To receive the MLF Review in your inbox, click on the green box to sign up:

Because the following newsletter is posted as an image, the web links will not work.  To read more about any of the articles under the MLF Cougar Clippings heading, visit our Newsroom.  Any additional relevant links are posted below the newsletter.

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MLF Cougar Clippings (click here for both the CDFG & Nebraska articles)

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The following edition was emailed to Mountain Lion Foundation newsletter subscribers on Wednesday, September 15th.  To receive the MLF Review in your inbox, click on the green box to sign up:

Because this newsletter is posted as an image, the web links will not work.  To read more about any of the articles under the MLF Cougar Clippings heading, visit our Newsroom.  Any additional relevant links are posted below the newsletter.

Home Newsroom Library States Forum Donate About

MLF Cougar Clippings

Nebraska Map Enlarged

Berkeley Meeting Poster ,   recap

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WOW, Pedro Nava and his dear wife Susan Jordon’s promotion for our event… I am speechless!     — Julia

The Ellen De Generes Show video referred
to above can be viewed here:

For more information about the event, see the post
ART Inc Invites You to Our 4th Annual Fundraiser!

Julia J. Di Sieno
Executive Director
Animal Rescue Team, inc.
805 896-1859
www.animalrescueteam.net