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

Last month OreCat Director Jayne Miller attended a public meeting to discuss cougar hunting and safety issues in Oregon.  In her follow up journal entry, Jayne commented that hunters felt they owned the wildlife and “bashed folks living in Portland and Eugene as not having a right to vote on issues they believe to be their own.“  Jayne went on to say, “I liked the idea of getting more Oregonians involved with the cost of caring for their wilderness.  I have a good plan about that I hope to share with folks soon!  The hunters claimed they owned the wilderness, and, if I do recall, they owned our ranch every hunting season and we got alot of fences and gates torn down.  I never got to tell them that Oregon belongs to all of us and without any cougars, your children and children’s children will have a much less quality life.”

Jayne is now ready to reveal and promote the legislative plan she hinted at in her journal entry.  The project hopes to even the playing field and put an end to the idea that hunters are the only ones financially contributing to wildlife programs.

The draft of Oregon Bill LC 1202 reads:

For more information visit OreCat.org

Thoughts and reflections from OreCat Director Jayne Miller after attending Oregon’s “That Darn Cat! Cougar Meeting” hosted by Rep Sherrie Sprenger, R-Scio.

August 19, 2010

Well, its been a long night.  I’m glad to be back on top of this mountain, in the dark, all alone and with a resident cougar.  Well, ok, I have two dogs that bark at him.  I left this paradise vacation on top of a mountain in the middle of 900 acres of BLM timber and the comfort of a multimillion dollar cabin; to go to Lebanon Oregon and sit with about 100 angry folks who booed me.  But some did come up later and apologized.  That’s ok, I lived with a brother who use to beat up my Raggedy Ann dolls and hang my barbies by their necks from the ceiling lights.   If you can survive that you can learn to live with anything.  After dropping my husband off at the farm, I did get followed for over an hour back to my trial head and then when the vehicle saw how far out they were, flashed their lights at me and left.  It felt safe to get back to my cougar.  This was the first of many meetings to try and get more cougars killed here in Oregon .  It was Representative Sherrie Sprenger, R-Scio, who said she wanted to hear from the public on the issue of cougars and she did a wonderful job conducting tonight’s meeting, however, she sounded in favor of killing them and not much else.  She was afraid her 13 year old son would be attacked by a cougar, although she had not seen one on her property.  This all happened because six sheep were killed on a farm in the area in 2 months…by six cougar.  So I blogged the news sites and then went to the program to speak on the behalf of the cougar and better management plans.

This is what I experienced:  First of all, ODFW is not referenced in any of the news articles I saw, nor did they mention this incident at the meeting.  They simply said nothing about it.  So, I really do not know if this is true or what happened.  I do know this is not the pattern of cougars.  I do know they can be raised in captivity and released.  I do know that if resident cougars are killed, more cougars will come into the territory.  Its’ called a “sink.” What ever happened, I can guarantee you humans played a big role in it happening.  I saw Cindy and her son at the meeting.  It was her farm this all happened on.  To me she seemed afraid to talk to anyone about this and seemed very afraid in general and appeared to just want to get the night over with.  An older man (I missed his name) spoke on her behalf stating she was too shy to talk and he sounded like Hitler as he ranted about killing cougar.  I heard alot of cougar killing stories that were not confirmed by ODFW or their representatives at the meeting.  There was a great deal of anger, story telling, discord and fear in the voices of the parties who spoke.  No one wanted to listen to reason.  They never mentioned the hounds men, but they sure did exploit children as a reason to kill cougar.  That was the worst part of it.   No one wanted to hear that a child had not been killed by a cougar here in Oregon or California for that matter.  California has more people, more livestock, and more cougar than any State in the Union and only 16 people have been attacked by cougar since 1890 to 2007.  5 were fatal, 2 from rabies (1909).  You can look this up on California ‘s Fish and Game website.

Instead they said, “We don’t care!  These are predators and must be killed.  I don’t care if cougars ever exist again!”  And they certainly bashed folks living in Portland and Eugene as not having a right to vote on issues they believe to be their own.  I liked the idea of getting more Oregonians involved with the cost of caring for their wilderness.  I have a good plan about that I hope to share with folks soon!  The hunters claimed they owned the wilderness, and, if I do recall, they owned our ranch every hunting season and we got alot of fences and gates torn down.  I never got to tell them that Oregon belongs to all of us and without any cougars, your children and children’s children will have a much less quality life. I know that is hard to understand, but it is called Tropic Cascadia and is not a good thing to try and live with.  With only a couple of minutes, I had no time to say that your farm feeds the city folks and they in turn supply you with income, and their taxes supply funds to maintain your roads, schools, and infrastructure to sustain your communities.  We are all networked by the streams and rivers that feed our watersheds and the air that is cleaned and made breathable by the forests that sustain us.  I never got to mention that this all happens because of cougars.  Because of their very existence, we exist, the honey bee exists, better deer populations exist and much more.  We Native Americans have known this for thousands of years.  I don’t think folks there tonight wanted to understand the Tropic Cascadia issues vast portions of American and our National Parks are devastated from.  Or the amazing reversals when cougar are reintroduced to these devastated areas.  I don’t think they would understand genetic extinction, anymore than I can understand why ODFW still thinks, after several years of killing more cougar than were killed before M18;  that we have 6000 cougar.  The math does not add up.

Even Jane Goodall has written about Oregon’s devastatingly poor cougar management plan.  Even the Smithsonian has documented this!  We do not have 6000 cougar, we do not have an accurate program that counts them to really know how many we have.   Our numbers are wrong.  We do have a society ill equipped to deal well with cougar.  We as Oregonians lack humanitarian and knowledgeable skills to do so, leaving us to soon be number 37 and then you can say goodbye to OUR wilderness, our quality of water, our vast forests and much much more.  It is my sincerest hope we can remove the polarization, the anger, the fear and the disrespect;  to learn to work together and preserve this great cat.  I am a cattle ranchers daughter, my life has been vested here in Oregon and our agriculture communities all my life and for the rest of my life.  I hear the losses, I’ve experienced them too.  And I know the truth.  I also know from experience that cougars are not that great a threat or that scary.  What was scary to hear and watch was the irrational fear about them.  I wish I could see more of this kind of action against childhood drug issues instead of being wasted on cougars.  From the bottom of my heart I know the that lack of understanding and education causes fear and fear is paralyzing,  and wrong decisions are made from fear. Lets put Oregon on the map by developing a cougar management plan that truly is responsible and is none lethal.  Lets remember that we are all united by the very fact we share the same soil, same water, same air and cities cannot exist without the country and ever more so vis versa.

Kindest regards

Jayne Miller

Fore more information about Jayne and the Oregon Cougar Action Team, visit www.OreCat.org

MLF has assisted pet and livestock owners all over the county with building lion-proof small livestock enclosures.  This simple measure of building a pen (many are completed in a day) and tucking animals safely inside at night, helps keep both domestic and wild animals safe.  The following pens have been used to protect, goats, sheep, pigs and pet dogs.  Over the years, thousands of blue prints and assembly directions have been downloaded from the MLF website.  To learn more about how to build one, click here.

Taylorsville, California

Wolf Creek and Indian Valley 4-H Club members and the Mountain Lion Foundation celebrated 4-H’s 100th birthday by completing the first livestock pen designed specifically to protect goats and other domestic animals from mountain lions. The enclosure, built for the Howe family’s goats, is part of a demonstration project designed by the Mountain Lion Foundation to help humans and mountain lions be better neighbors.

“I’m glad our goats Lady and Mr. Freeze will be safe from lions,” said Shelby Howe, a 10-year-old 4-H member. “I like mountain lions – I just don’t want to feed them.” Shelby presented his 4-H project focusing on safeguarding goats from mountain lions at the Plumas County Fair that August.

Taylorsville, California

Jessica and Nathan no longer have to worry about the female lion that repeatedly guides her kittens down Wolf Creek, between their two backyards, across a busy highway and through the trailer court across the street. Every year parents and the local Fish and Game Warden advise elementary children to be aware of the mother lion and her kittens, who frequent the creek which runs below the Main Street bridge and through town. Most children in the area will tell you they know just what to do when they see one.

Valley Springs, California

While eating breakfast one morning, the Jorrick family noticed a mountain lion lounging in the tree just outside their kitchen window, not far from their unprotected goats.  The Jorrick’s property was home to more than a dozen Jenny Lind 4H club members’ project pygmy goats.  The club then decided it was time to build a lion-proof small livestock enclosure to protect their animals.  With a little help from MLF, the goats are now safe and sound in their pen at night.

Felton, California

When invited to participate in the MLF Living with Lions Ranchers’ Assistance Program, the Felton 4-H Club was eager to join this pro-active movement. This program provides groups with knowledge and understanding to make responsible decisions in their livestock management, and also includes a one-day workshop to build a predator-proof small livestock enclosure.

Although their livestock had not suffered from mountain lion depredation, over the years there had been many mountain lion sightings in the surrounding San Lorenzo Valley.

Indian Valley, California – Revisited

Shelby Howe, whose goats were the recipient of Mountain Lion Foundation’s very first pen, continues to spread the word about their efficacy. In 2005, Shelby won an award for his exhibit at the Plumas County Fair which showed the steps to take BEFORE getting a goat.

Even when it is not possible to know how many lions still roam because of these efforts, MLF will work with communities to build not just lion proof pens but to build a future for lions in the rural West. Local residents continue to raise the bar for best management practices.

Salem, Oregon

Pat and George Copa love their rare and valuable Pygoras, but still appreciate the wild predators that live just outside their Verdant Vistas farm in Oregon. The solution to keeping their Pygoras (Pygmy-Angora crossbreeds) safe and living peacefully with coyotes and mountain lions: an MLF-designed predator-proof pen. The first one in Oregon, too! During the day, the animals roam the yard with their guard llamas but from dusk ’til dawn they are secured in the new pen. MLF sponsored the build to serve as a demonstration for locals in this rural area, but plans are available for free at mountainlion.org and can be built for around $500 with supplies from your local hardware store.

Amador County, California

In a note to MLF, Janice wrote:
A couple of years ago, my friend Cathy said that you had published the plans for the lion proof goat enclosure.  I had lost all of my goats to a lion several years prior, and had decided that I could no longer have goats because of the risk of losing them.  I was thrilled to think that I could once again have pet goats and that they would be safe.  As you can see we made some changes to your plan.  Our goat fort is 18′x24′ and has an area to store hay and other goat things.  I have been very happy with our goat fort and my goats seem to be happy too.  Janice

Woodland Hills, California

During the Farm Walk, Canoga Park High School FFA volunteers built this livestock pen at Pierce College. Due to heavy development in southern California, mountain lion habitat in the region has become mostly isolated patches.  Learning to coexist with wildlife and protect their dispersal corridors is especially important.  MLF Southern California Field Representative, Christa Kermode, along with all the other hard workers display their pen for the locals. Nice work everyone!

South Dakota

In South Dakota, volunteers work with MLF and the Black Hills Mountain Lion Foundation to create a predator proof enclosure for fiber goats and sheep. In addition to the pen, volunteers also retrofitted an adjacent barn to house livestock safe from cougars, coyotes and pet dogs.  A chain link fence and secure roof are key!

Residents in South Dakota do not have to protect their animals from wildlife, and can kill any mountain lion that wanders through their property.  These two buildings will show the community there are easy was to coexist, and killing a lion is not necessary.

Naples, Florida

Not even Tropical Storm Barry could dampen the enthusiasm of these predator proof pen builders in Naples, Florida – although the downpours certainly dampened pretty much everything else! At one point, the wind was so strong, the crew decided to hold off putting the roof tarp on until the storm had passed.

Regardless, the local volunteers finished two pens on Saturday and now Rege and Al are keeping their goats safe. Just down the road, Rebecca is protecting her canine companions. Due to excellent media coverage, people all over the region now have access to MLF’s easy instructions for building their own pens.

Naples, Florida

The day after the two builds in Naples, most of the crew came back to brave the steaming heat while building a demonstration pen at the Collier County Extension! All told, County Commissioner Henry Coletta, along with volunteers from the Mountain Lion Foundation, Defenders of Wildlife, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, National Parks Service, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Collier County Extension Service and Friends of the Panther Refuge joined 4-H kids and families for an educational, fun and animal-friendly weekend. Special thanks for the Florida office of Defenders of Wildlife for organizing and sponsoring the event to Protect People, Pets, Livestock and the federally endangered Florida Panthers!

For more information on protecting pets and livestock, or how to build a lion-proof pen, visit MountainLion.org.

OPERATION BUY BACK THEIR LIVES WITH A LICENSE TO PROTECT

WWW.OreCat.org
PO Box 1183, Jefferson, Oregon 97352
503-743-2318

elderoak1@yahoo.com

OreCat@live.com

Responsible Oregonians For A Sustainable, Safe, and Humane Cougar Management Plan.  Looking ahead we strive to preserve the large predators that are the “Key Corner Stones” to a healthy management of Nature and ultimately how we will eat and live.  Could the loss of cougar in 36 States contributed to the colony collapse of our bees that threatens our food supply?

Oregon Cougar Action Team has been blessed with some of the most forward thinking and compassionate members any organization could hope for.  Individuals with capacity to re-imagine Oregon as a State tolerant of all our once rich biodiversity, bestowing upon our Natural resources the dignity long overdue them in the hopes to revive our once abundant ecosystems.  I hold credit to Mountain Lion Foundation for giving me 1800 hours of training, Professor William Ripple of OSU’s www.LordsOfNature.org research work, and the  innovative thinking of  OreCat members for designing the  program called “Operation Buy Back Their Lives With A License To Protect“.  If you can hold the following vision in your heart and mind, please join us today and use our ideas to create a Bill in your State.  We want you to copy us, we want you to use our ideas.  We want you to save your cougar.  Go to our website:  www.OreCat.org (503-743-2318) to learn more about this program we are promoting here in Oregon.  Join us, help us with funding, or start your own cougar program.  But most of all, support your fellow cougar organizations and unit with Mountain Lion Foundation with the possible goal of putting this great Cat on the endangered list.

Operation Buy Back Their Lives With A License To Protect is an innovate and forward thinking program that contributes not only to the reversal of our current planetary concerns, but contributes to healthy forests, clean air, and repaired watersheds. (see www.LordsOfNature.org and read “The American Hunting Myth”, by Ron Baker.

In Oregon today non-hunting individuals have no representation concerning our wildlife because there is no legal avenue open to influence the direction of policies taken by ODFW by paying them, as a hunter does, to manage uniquely for the interest of those who have paid ODFW to manage Oregon’s resources for their own desires.  If one individual can pay ODFW to kill wildlife, than another individual must have the right to pay ODFW to not kill wildlife.  Members of OreCat re-imagine Oregon ODFW respecting the rights of the none hunting individual who want to participate with the Natural resources that belong to all Oregonians, not an Oregon wildlife management program designed just on the whims of hunters.  With this plan an Oregonian would be able to buy a “license to protect” in order to create a balanced source of income from hunters and non-hunters.  The only element missing in all past approaches was the proposition of a course of income equal or superior to what ODFW gets from hunters.  As an example, licenses could be sold at all the same outlets as licenses to kill = and for the same amount!  Once all is sold, a tally could be made and from the 777 cougars that are property of ALL Oregonians, 500 may be bought back and saved.  Receiving money from non-hunters would curtail ODFW from recruiting more hunters (a really bad carbon imprint in the wilderness), relaxing regulations (a hay day for poachers), giving them more access to land (resulting in more private property damage and trespassing), and so on.  In paying ODFW, there is no doubt that the catastrophic situation for the cougars and other wildlife such as the declining bears and the horrific damage off road vehicles create, lead pollution from hunting ammo, private property damage, livestock killing, animal displacement from all the invasive activity the selling of over 500,000 licenses can cause as well as a huge carbon imprint this kind of killing obsession promotes; will be turned around.  Then those who cherish a living Oregon wildlife and healthy ecosystems would in essence become ODFW’s other “employer.”  For more information, visit www.OreCat.org or www.LordsOfNature.org, or call 503-743-231.   Jayne Miller, Director, OreCat