I will be the first to admit that I am more of a dog lover than a cat lover. Just something about cats that don’t make me all squishy inside, I don’t know. But the big cats, man are the beautiful. A couple of mountain lions have been shot in Missouri in the past few weeks by hunters and farmers.
This photo is courtesy of Missouri Department Conservation website!
They can grow to 7-8 feet long from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail and usually around 140-160 lbs but can be up to 200 lbs! Imagine that coming at you when you are out for your nature walk. The last one shot was by a hunter that felt he was threatened. Yep, I bet he thought that, I know I would. Gives me chills to think about one just looking at me, but they are so beautiful and graceful. We have never had one on our farm that we know about, one was killed about 20 miles south of here a few years ago on a highway.
Bobcats on the other hand have been spotted on our farm by Jimmy. He was out deer hunting and there were six of them that came out of the woods and each of the stopped and looked up at him in the deer stand. He was a little concerned because he didn’t have enough ammo to shoot all of them. A man we know set traps and trapped one and I have the pictures somewhere on my computer (just can’t find it right now). They wanted to mount it but I am not sure his wife went along with it. I don’t think I would want to walk into my living room and see that beautiful (but very scary) animal standing there in a crouch, ready to jump at you. Of course, Jimmy thought that would be neat! They are much smaller than Mountain Lions, growing only to less than 50 inches long and less than 50 lbs, but man is that enough to scare the bejesus out of me.
This photo is courtesy of Missouri Department Conservation website as well!
Both of these are beautiful animals but I have all the respect in the world for them, they are faster and fitter than me and they are carnivores! Best to view at a distance and with the utmost respect, we are in their house.
Domesticated cats on the other hand… I am sure ours are not carnivores, they sit at the door and meow loudly if Jimmy is even 5 minutes late in the feed cycle. They never catch a mouse that I know of and they are now so fat that their bellies drag in the snow lately. What good are they except sitting around all day and eating cat food. They don’t play with the grandkids, running away when they are around, unless they are being fed. Sometimes, Hanna can catch Sophie but she wants down immediately. There is nothing graceful about them either.
Wouldn’t it be a wonderful job to research big cats in Missouri. I know we don’t have as many in Missouri as some areas but we should enjoy the beauty of the ones we do here. Keep a safe distance, respect their home, and most of all don’t put yourself in harms way. BUT remember if it is you or the cat, MDC says, you won’t be charged if you have to shoot them, but you have to prove that you felt threatened. Let them live in peace as long as they are not doing you harm.
Thankfully, I don’t believe we have any mountain lions either at Tulip, but bobcats, yes! David saw the kittens/cubs last spring and some our deer hunters have seen and definitely heard them. My uncle swears the shriek will chill you to the bone. One thing with limits on hunting etc and keeping what they like to eat readily available coupled with urban sprawl, we are likely to see more predators in our rural areas, thats for sure.
BTW, I am definitely a dog person, you can’t trust a cat, its those eyes, I think. 😉
Kathy, if you have never heard their shriek, just wait until you do. It will really freak you out! Sounds like a scream like you have never heard! So true about urban sprawl. We keep pushing them out of their habitat so they go somewhere.
Mylene, I saw a bobcat when I was going through the coal mine road, Maupin Lane. It was skinny and had long legs, but it had to be a bobcat. It was much too large to be a domestic cat. I am amazed at all the wildlife we have now. When we moved here we never saw Canada Geese or turkey. Now the geese are a nuisance, as well as the deer. I wonder if the newly released elk will make their way up here from southern Missouri? Farmers should be credited for feeding all the wildlife.
I am sure what you saw was a bobcat! They are pretty creatures if they get enough to eat, but terrifying to me as well. My dog got a taste of the bobcat claw a few years back and he is a 90 lb lab/akita mix and very strong. Red tail Hawks are the birds I see most often around here but have seen turkeys and a few geese on the neighbors little lake.
great article
Thanks.