Mountain Lion shot in Des Moines
- Thread starter oldman
- Start date
Not sure if sarcasm or not, but Iowa certainly does. Numerous sightings up near my hometown (northwest Iowa) over the past few years. Whatever theory you want to believe on why they're here is irrelevant. But sightings are fairly common up there along the Big Sioux River area.
Good News: I currently have a hot little cougar hitting on me.
Bad News: At my age a cougar is 90.
Does any legal beagle know what would happen if I shot a mountain lion in the yard of my Des Moines home?
Would I get charged with firing a weapon in the city limits? Or would it be okay in self defense?
Would I get charged with firing a weapon in the city limits? Or would it be okay in self defense?
- Mar 27, 2006
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Really bad news: That's not a cougar. At best that's a GILF, maybe a GGILF. At worst? It's the Shining, room 237.
Damn, just when I was feeling good about myself. Thanks for getting me up to speed before I posted the photo.
They should have called that Wildman from the discovery channel. You know, the autistic guy that they send out to wrestle dangerous animals.
Just make sure you yell "it's coming right at me!" before firing and you're good to go.
I lived in Tucson for a while and they didn't kill the lions unless they killed first. Most of them would be so afraid of people, they wouldn't come anywhere near you. It is very unnatural for a lion to attack a human. I love how everyone assumes this thing is just going to go around eating everybody if they let it live. It is pretty sad that they killed it, and I don't even like animals.
Verified Mountain Lion Attacks on Humans in California (1890 - 2007)
| DATE | TYPE | ATTACK LOCATION | COUNTY | VICTIM SEX | AGE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 1890 | Fatal | Quartz Valley | Siskiyou | Male | 7yrs. |
| July 1909 | Fatal* | Morgan Hill | Santa Clara | Male | 10 yrs. |
| Fatal* | Female | 22 yrs. | |||
| March 1986 | Nonfatal | Caspers Wilderness Park | Orange | Female | 5 yrs. |
| Oct. 1986 | Nonfatal | Caspers Wilderness Park | Orange | Male | 6 yrs. |
| March 1992 | Nonfatal | Gaviota State Park | Santa Barbara | Male | 9 yrs. |
| Sept. 1993 | Nonfatal | Cuyamaca State Park | San Diego | Female | 10 yrs. |
| Apr. 1994 | Fatal | Auburn State Recreation Area | El Dorado | Female | 40 yrs. |
| Aug. 1994 | Nonfatal | Mendocino County (remote) | Mendocino | Male | 50s |
| Nonfatal | Female | 50s | |||
| Dec. 1994 | Fatal | Cuyamaca State Park | San Diego | Female | 56 yrs. |
| Mar. 1995 | Nonfatal | Mt. Lowe (San Gabriel Mtns.) | Los Angeles | Male | 27 yrs. |
| Jan. 2004 | Fatal | Whiting Ranch Regional Park | Orange | Male | 35 yrs. |
| Jan. 2004 | Nonfatal | Whiting Ranch Regional Park | Orange | Female | 30 yrs. |
| June 2004 | Nonfatal | Sequoia National Forest | Tulare | Female | 28 yrs. |
| Jan. 2007 | Nonfatal | Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park | Humboldt | Male | 70 yrs |
| *Fatalities in 1909 diagnosed as due to rabies. Last updated: Feb. 7, 2007 |
I would rather the Police be proactive then reactive here. Also, there is a great chance that any domesticated pet would be eaten alive by this thing. If the Police just scared this thing out of that neighborhood, and the next day it ate someones dog, how would you feel?
Rather difficult to just chase it off when the nearest natural cover (the river) is 1.3 miles away. I have no issue with the decision to "shoot to kill".
Pretty sure I saw a show about the attacks at Whiting Ranch Regional Park.
CNN.com - Mountain lion victim upgraded to fair condition - Jan. 10, 2004
Yep, it's different in parts of the country where law enforcement are trained and equipped to handle mountain lions. The DMPD had no choice here. That said, when is the DNR going to take their head out of their ***** and recognize that these guys have a viable population in this state? It doesn't get much more interior than Des Moines.
I get the "tranquilize it" argument if you're talking about something harmless, like a canadian. If you find a canadian in your backyard, yes..tranquilize it and ship it back to its natural habitat. With mountain lions, I'm all for shoot first ask questions later. I also am not the type that picks up spiders in the house and walks them outside. I kill and flush them. If a mountain lion would fit, I would take the same approach.
