Latest Bend cougar killing rekindles fierce debate

Visitors to Bend’s Pilot Butte encountered a new sign posted by state parks officials Monday that warned of a weekend cougar sighting as critics attacked a police decision to shoot and kill the big cat.

“I was really surprised it was so close to town — and so close to the trail Scary,” said Bend resident Kelsey Reyes, who added she almost thought twice about her trip up the butte Monday afternoon.

Bend police shot and killed the cougar Saturday evening after a hiker spotted the cat sitting just a few yards off the trail and contacted authorities

Police Lt. Clint Burleigh said officers could not reach the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife at that time, and had no choice but to pull the trigger.

“Our No. 1 goal is community safety,” Burleigh said. “We’re not set up to put a cougar in the back of a car, so that length of time that it might take a tranquilizer to work — (officers) took that into consideration in the decision that had to be made.”

It’s the second time in about two months a cougar was killed in the city. On Jan. 30, a cougar was captured and later killed after it was found in a tree behind a home in southeast Bend.

The deaths have sparked an uproar with animal activists.

“We think relocation is the best way to go in this situation,” said Oregon Wild spokesman Erik Fernandez. “How do we educate either the Bend police or persuade the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to give more weight to considering relocation?”

George Wuerthner, a Bend biologist and spokesman for Eugene-based Predator Defense, also told NewsChannel 21 he was disappointed by the decision to kill the cougar.

“It’s an example of overreaction, in my view,” Wuerthner said. “This was an unnecessary killing — chances are if it would have been left alone, it wouldn’t have been there in the morning.”

While activists united in condemning the shooting, community members are more divided.

“I’m really glad that they handled it the way that they did,” Reyes said. “I feel really safe, and if it were to ever happen again, I think they would handle it the same way.”

But Bend resident Nick Pastore said he’d rather have seen the animal relocated.

“If you’re going to hold a rifle in your hand and shoot it with a bullet, you can just as easily shoot it with a tranquilizing dart,” Pastore said.

ODFW officials said they support the decision made by Bend police.

The department now has the cougar. Spokeswoman Michelle Dennehy said the cougar was a 120-pound male, 2 to 3 years of age. She said initial examinations of the cat found it to be healthy and free of injury, other than the bullet wound.

Burleigh said he estimates about 40 people were visiting the park at the time of the cougar sighting.

By Monday night, a poll posted by KTVZ flip-flopped between those who supported the killing and those who opposed it. At 7 p.m., 54 percent of respondents said they did not support the shooting, while 46 percent said they did support the decision.

You can weigh in too. Just head to the home page of our Website and find the poll halfway down the right side of the page