Potential Cougar killing lambs

cancer

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Not sure if this goes in the hunting section, but here goes:
One of my co-workers has had 20 lambs killed or taken by a predator over the last week. They know it's not human because they've found some carcasses with bite marks around the back of the head, as if the predator had grabbed the lamb from the snout and engulfed the head into its mouth. My co-worker thinks this is the actions of a cougar, rather than coyotes, because the 'yote's tend to just kill what they need to eat and leave the rest of the herd alone, while this predator is actually lurking off with the lambs intact and alive. My co-worker believes that this may be a sign that the cougar is stealing the lambs and taking it back to its young alive for gruesome play toys. Unfortunately all this is taking place in Southern-Ontario, where the MNR still hasn't admitted that the animals exist here.

My co-worker is really becoming unnerved, because whatever's taking the lambs is very bold. It'll stalk and kill the lambs with humans nearby, and even with vehicles with radios on in the field and human scent everywhere.

Unfortunately, staking the field out and watching out with rifles hasn't been productive thus far, because the predators are coming and killing the lambs in the windows between when people are watching the field (sneaky creature).

Can anyone recomend any method for stalking the potential cougar? Would dogs work?
 
20 lambs :eek:

Do you have a trail cam, might be useful to gauge their feeding times and habits. Other than that, the only thing I can suggest is to hunt in shifts.

Not sure if you have a decent caller, but some I would think can be programmed with lamb sounds, not sure though.
 
Yeah, 20 lambs, pretty sickening.

Are you sure that it's not wolves or coyotes?
No, they're not sure. They originally thought it was wolves and or coyotes, but other irregularities in typical wolf and coyote kills they've had in the past made them raise eyebrows. They found one track in the mud on after the rain, but they didn't take a picture or plaster mold. Based on the track, it looked like a cougar.

Anyone seriously interested in helping feel free to send me a PM. The co-worker's farm is outside of Chatsworth. I'll pass on the offers to my co-worker tomorrow.
 
any chance that its a dog? They have been known to kill sheep just for the hell of it. One of my friends on Manitoulin Island used to have a herd of about 100 sheep, and dogs were by far his biggest problem.
 
i know that in BC there are a few professional cougar hunters that specialize in exactly this sort of problem. if you can find something similar in Ontario it would definetely be worth a try.
 
I'd bet coyotes as cougars rarely kill that much in a week in one spot.

Only way to effectively catch a cougar is find a fresh track and let a couple good hounds go on it. Guessing there aren't many cougar dogs in Ontario. Wolf tracks can look an awful lot like cougar tracks under the right conditions.

What are the legalities of killing cougars in Ontario...even if protecting livestock? Might be something to check into before anyone gets too trigger happy.
 
Did they find any of the dead animals dragged away from the kill site and covered? Cougar tend to cover their quarry for a later feast.

The bite marks around the head do sound like cat though. Bears will also cover the carcass and could leave bite marks. My experience with wolves and coyotes has been that they don't generally drag the carcass into cover.

I've heard of sheep farmers in the western US states losing dozens to cougar.
 
I grew up in Southern Alberta. A neighbor lost 10 to 15 sheep a night for over a week. He got a government predator control hunter out who identified the culprit as a cougar. The cat would eat the choice parts of one or two per nite and kill another 8 to 12 just for sport. The hunter tried dogs but for some reason they never got him. After a week or so the neighbor started locking his sheep up in a barn every night for at least two weeks. The cat must have moved on down the river as the neighbor didn't have any more trouble
 
Gonna sound funny but get a llama. They will kill a cougar to protect their herd....Other then that create a few spots where some varmint hunters can set up and put the predator down when/if spotted. Hope for the best.

CK
 
What are the legalities of killing cougars in Ontario...even if protecting livestock? Might be something to check into before anyone gets too trigger happy.

Livestock trumps wildlife here...Especially when the MNR denies they exist here...
 
I'd suggest locking up the sheep at night. Cougars LOOVE to eat lambs, it's liek candy to them.

A few large breed dogs may not be able to track or tree the cougar, but they will definitely make a stink when it comes around.
 
Coyotes will make multiple kills at one time and consume very little at the time. I've seen as many as 4 dead Hereford calves in a barnyard, killed in one night and not much eaten. Claves were being killed almost daily for 2 weeks. Two local coyotes were removed from the equation and the calf killing ended. That said, coyote kills usually shows damage to the back end and throat.
The MNR has game cameras set up throughout southern and central Ontario. One of them is set up on my friends farm near Sunderland, Ont..
If your farmer friend's primary goal is to protect his livestock, I would highly recommend that he invest in a couple of Marrema guard dogs. They are VERY effective guardians. They will not leave their post and will aggressively chase/attack any predator. A lot of sheep and goat farmers have them in Ontario, and they can usually be bought for $200-$400 each. I know farmers who use donkeys and llamas for livestock protection, but they seem to have more issues with them than the farmers who use dogs.
 
Yes there are cougars in Ontario. And up where you are there is a real bad problem with coyotes and wild dogs. I hunt just south of you in the Beaver and they are really taking a toll on the bear and rabbit populations up there.

Time to get a hunt under way.
 
Gonna sound funny but get a llama. They will kill a cougar to protect their herd....

A mature cougar can and will kill animals up to the size of elk. I really doubt that a lama spitting at one will cause it much concern.

Cancer, if your friends are indeed dealing with a cougar it sound like it may be a female with adolescents. While training the kittens - which will be between 60 and 80 pounds right about now - they will kill dozens of animals without eating too much.
 
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