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Old 02-12-2009, 03:28 PM
 
Location: Lansing, MI
2,948 posts, read 6,996,489 times
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There have been several horses throughout lower MI that have been attacked by a cougar size animal, and bite / claw marks have been consistant with that of a cougar. Also have quite a few horse owning acquintances that have seen cougars for themselves. Had a black bear sighting not too far from Lansing a few years ago, too.

Yes, cougars exist in lower MI. Yes, bears exist in lower MI.

No, they are not attacking people. Yet.
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Old 02-12-2009, 04:46 PM
 
Location: Grosse Ile Michigan
30,702 posts, read 79,387,296 times
Reputation: 39420
Quote:
Originally Posted by sunshineann View Post
lol..I didnt mean learn about them up close and personal..lol I probably should not have watched that show last week, where this women was riding a bike on a bike trail..granted it wasnt in michigan..and she was attacked by a cat of some sort....Now i really wanna run out and start walking and riding the trails..lolol.
That was in Californnia. The mountain lions are being driven out of their habitat and into populated areas by development and lack of game, plus excessive reproduction. There is nothing left for them to eat except us, so they are getting more and more agressive out there. A mountain lion which is what most people mean when they refer to a cougar, is big and very muscular with short hair. Until recently, they are shy and stay well away from humans.

It would be hard to mistake a bobat for a mountain lion. Bobcats are cute. An encounter with a mountain lion leaves you shaking. I have run accross both while hiking. I hope that I never see a mountain lion again.

Tracks can be decieving. If the animal is running and the ground is soft, they will leave a larger and distorted track. I had a very large dog that I took hiking. In the soft mud she left tracks that people mistook for bear traks.
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Old 04-27-2011, 08:57 AM
 
2 posts, read 2,737 times
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I live in traverse city, there are definatly cougars among us. In the summer our family works together, as well as carpools. MY parents live in the thompsonville area. In the early summer of 2010 5 of us were on our way to work and a cougar crossed the road right in front of us. That was a huge wake up call that these potentially deadly cats are among us, now when I go for my runs in the woods i make sure to keep pepper spray at hand. Hopefully they have enough food in the woods that they wont see us as there pray
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Old 04-27-2011, 09:03 AM
 
Location: NC, USA
7,084 posts, read 14,802,255 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by heatherbrowne View Post
I live in traverse city, there are definatly cougars among us. In the summer our family works together, as well as carpools. MY parents live in the thompsonville area. In the early summer of 2010 5 of us were on our way to work and a cougar crossed the road right in front of us. That was a huge wake up call that these potentially deadly cats are among us, now when I go for my runs in the woods i make sure to keep pepper spray at hand. Hopefully they have enough food in the woods that they wont see us as there pray
I doubt that the cougar will pray for prey, but the prey may well pray not to be prey.
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Old 04-27-2011, 09:08 AM
 
2 posts, read 2,737 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by diamondgirl45 View Post
Ok, so this is my mom's question. She read the other day about the bear problem in a state that borders Michigan....she can't recall which one. But since we are moving to Michigan soon she wants to know if there are many bears or cougars around, and if there have ever been any attacks on humans.
In the last 3 years on my parents property we have had numerous bear sightings as well as 1 cougar sighting. We have only had 1 encounter of a bear false charging other than that they run. My parents have even encountered a mom and 3 cubs on the trail behind house and they just took off in the other direction. We exercise caution when we are out , the fear lies with the cougar.
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Old 04-27-2011, 05:16 PM
YAZ
 
Location: Phoenix,AZ
7,697 posts, read 14,015,617 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dusty Rhodes View Post
I doubt that the cougar will pray for prey, but the prey may well pray not to be prey.
Their prey ain't there, so they're gonna be hungry.
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Old 04-27-2011, 05:33 PM
 
1,105 posts, read 1,618,719 times
Reputation: 1444
Quote:
Originally Posted by heatherbrowne View Post
I live in traverse city, there are definatly cougars among us. In the summer our family works together, as well as carpools. MY parents live in the thompsonville area. In the early summer of 2010 5 of us were on our way to work and a cougar crossed the road right in front of us. That was a huge wake up call that these potentially deadly cats are among us, now when I go for my runs in the woods i make sure to keep pepper spray at hand. Hopefully they have enough food in the woods that they wont see us as there pray

If you don't mind my asking where do you get Pepper Spray these days? I used to be able to buy it in a multitude of stores, but now I never see it. I don't like walking in the woods alone without something, and I'm not a gun carrying person. I don't want to give up my walks, but I think there are risks anytime you're out in a wooded area.
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Old 04-28-2011, 08:41 AM
 
Location: Port Angeles, Washington
265 posts, read 720,252 times
Reputation: 200
We live 15 minutes from BayCity and we have a bear that lives out back at our pond, or it did before winter. In about a 10 mile radius there have been about 5-6 different bears sighted.
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Old 04-28-2011, 06:15 PM
 
Location: Negaunee,Michigan
217 posts, read 589,082 times
Reputation: 101
I live in the U.P. and just heard on our local news that in the past 5 years, there have been 6 verified cougar sightings.
Are cougars really in the UP? : News : UpperMichigansSource.com
I have lived here for 22 years...have seen bears 4 times, wolves a couple times,have a pack of coyotes right across the road from us, never seen a moose (me and hubby did see tracks last week for the first time!) and never a cougar. I find it hard to believe that if they are that elusive or non-existent here in the U.P.with all the woods, that there could EVER be any downstate....that is a bit of a reach for me...........
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