Chicago visitors - beware the urban cougar!
 

A cougar weighing in at 150 lbs and 5 feet long was shot & killed late Monday afternoon in the Roscoe village neighborhood. Reports from other North Shore communities like Wilmette on sightings have suddenly gained credibility.

When I first heard this, I called up my MIL to make sure she wasn't on the prowl AGAIN, but this is a true story. Anyone heard anything further on whether not additional animals have been sighted? Speculation is the cougar made it to Chicago from the SD Black Hills. A true Fodorite in spirit - wanderlust trancends form!

When I first heard this, I called up my MIL to make sure she wasn't on the prowl :))

ROLF!

there have been some speculating that another cat might be on the loose. However,concensus is that this was a young male who was probably chased from the wilds of wisconsin by older males. he was looking for love in all the wrong places.....and followed a railroad track down to chicago!

I understand for safety reasons the need to bring the cougar down, but never the less, it was a sad sight to see him lying dead.

Yeah, that was my feeling too, Isabellasu. Still don't really understand why they don't use traquilizer darts rather than bullets. Are they not effective on an animal that large?

Chicago's finest also managed to kill an air conditioner while they were emptying their guns into the hapless couger.

http://tinyurl.com/5fbjmo

Cougar, sorry.

Regarding the use of bullets rather than tranquilizer darts: Apparently the guy with the tranquilizer gun was on his way there, but the police decided that they couldn't wait for him to arrive, since the cat was roaming around a crowded neighborhood and they had no way to warn everybody to stay inside.

www.urbancougar.com

LOL

I also heard that the tranquilizers darts take up to 20 minutes to work during which time the cat would continue to wander and could become more agitated and dangerous. Its easy to second guess the police reaction - they had to make quick decision.

Thanks for the explanations. I figured there must be a reason they didn't use tranquilizer darts. But it wasn't mentioned on the news story I saw that night.

We'd actually been in that neighborhood the day before. Kinda freaky to think the cougar probably was too!

That's quite a story.

I like:

"He knew it was a cougar because he had seen it on the Discovery Channel, he said."

Believe it or not, cougars are frequently sighted in the Los Angeles/Orange County area. And not the MIL type, either.

This happened 4 blocks from my apartment. I walk down that alley all the time on my way to the gym.

This happened Monday and I have to say I'm tired of them still running the story and showing the poor thing lying there over and over.

Cruisin, agreed. My girlfriend and I walked by that alley yesterday, and we saw a news van coming out. It's over!

couldn't they have used a stun gun?

Tasers have been very controversial around Chicago as well, and they may not have had a stun gun with them, who knows??