Mountain Lions a Threat??

 Mountain lions in South Dakota apparently are being considered a threat to livestock & humans by at least one state lawmaker here.  He has introduced a bill that would open hunting of them year around in 95 percent of South Dakota. As it is now, only a very short hunting season in one area of the Black Hills is allowed, and that's only been for about the last two years.

 Reports from the SD Game Fish & Parks dept. tell quite another tale. There in fact has been very few attacks or loss of livestock from cougar attacks. The majority of cattle and horse injuries were caused by fences; not by the pumas! In fact since 2002 only about TEN cases of loss of livestock from attacks by the cats have been reported and in at least one case the cat was killed as well. Law already permits the killing of one of these cats if it is caught attacking livestock or threatening people. Oh..by the way..number of humans attacked? ZERO!   

  I have nothing against most hunting and take part in it myself from time to time. In some animals it is necessary to control herd sizes to protect against disease and starvation. But I see no reason to expand the season or increase the number of the mountain lions killed each year. No sense in making a mountain out of a molehill!

 I intend to call the state capitol and voice my objections to the bill. I hope cooler (and SMARTER) heads will prevail, take note of the GF&P reports, and prevent the needless slaying of these beautiful animals!

 By the way..the animal that causes the most damage, human injuries, and even deaths?The domestic bovine bull! C):-)

"Truly man is the king of beasts, for his brutality exceeds theirs." ~Da Vinci

"The greatness of a nation and it's moral progress can be judged by the way it's animals are treated."~ Gandhi