OT - Speaking of cats...BIG cats...where's that levergun!

[mod71alaska]

Now you have to decide, do you want to send her (or him) out to warm up the car or not!!! These were taken this weekend at a house in Conifer, CO just west of Denver. (Photographer unknown)

[winchester1886]

Here puss puss puss come here kitty, who let the cat out.

[rjohns94]

arent they cute

[kimwcook]

How'd you like to come around the corner of your house and see that at about 10 feet. I tell ya right now I'd probably have to cape my shorts.

[Chas.]

They must come out monthly to have their photo taken.
http://www.levergunlovers.com/viewtopic ... 16#p103916

[Ysabel Kid]

Must be siblings. Don't cougars generally live solitary lives except when rearing their young (and then just a mother and her offspring)?

[madman4570]

I think with them all over the place that might just put an end to the going out alone in the dark deer hunting.(already bad enough with the big problem bears we have around here people feeding)I would be waiting till at least it's daylight.(which very early is actually a bad time too)

With all those Kitty's deer hunting probably wouldn't be too great anyway.

Makes me think of last deer season when I went out alone (at 5.30am---Dark)setup on the ground.
(Now just the week before my nephew who lives very close "has 1000 acres" at his place he swears he saw
two big Mountain Lions(long tails) stalking three deer in a field.
So here I am in the dark, honestly thinking a tiny bit about the possibility of them/cousin don't lie. I couldn't explain it but I got this really weird spooky feeling.All of a sudden heard some movement and a big limb snapped like right beside me.
Had to do it,hit the little LED Maglite and for an instant had the heart jump.It was a small deer(perfect mountain lion color)about 20 feet away.
Nope,no thanks would not being going out in the dark alone with them all over. Not that brave/or would that be kinda dumb?

[gak]

The "purrfect" predator, quick/fast, strong and very efficient. Got to play with an near-full grown one (appx 11 month old I was told) several years back in my office. Long story, but it'd been orphaned, found by a trucker and then given over to Game & Fish, who grew it a bit and was transferring it over to a big cat preserve in Oregon...as folks in my office met with them about (how to go about) setting up a similar preserve in our city's mountains. (Hard to imagine now?)

Anyway, it loved to "rough house," display its teeth/growl+screech/bravado and took to being pounded on like your big Lab. Enormous paws and could hear that purr from across the room! Amazing animal, but wouldn't want to run across them, as said, in the twilight on a hunt, or like the pics above some morning going to your car!

A colleague here in Az saw one off her deck when sipping coffee one morning, max out going after a desert mule deer buck in full flight down a desert wash--and closing in fast. Never saw the end to that as there was a a major crooked bend in the wash, but could imagine! She said didn't think the deer had much of a chance escaping that one. Used to be very reclusive/rare sight back in the old days (50s/60s/70s--maybe 80s and even into the 90s), not so much any more.

[Otto]

You know, we have house cats that are always leaving muddy pawprints on the hood and roof of the car, but uh, yeah. Not sure I'd try swatting these with a broom.

[Modoc ED]

That's a case where you'd want to send the wife out to start the car so as to give her some on-the-job experience for starting a car in cold weather.

[Halfbreed]

Looks like a mother and her two yearlings. I was scouting Elk once with two buddies and had a mother cougar and her two yearlings pass within 20 feet of me. Wind and camo were in my favor, and they came from behind so I didn't see them until they were within 30 feet. I let them know I was there before they got any closer. They stopped and watched me for a second then proceeded down slope walking past both my buddies. BEAUTIFUL creatures they are, my favorites species of cat.