Bend police knocked for killing cougar in park

BEND, Ore. — Wildlife advocates have criticized Bend police for shooting a cougar, saying it could have been tranquilized and relocated, or left to leave on its own.

It’s the second time in about two months a cougar was killed in the city, The Bulletin newspaper reported.

A hiker at Pilot Butte State Scenic Viewpoint reported the animal Saturday a few yards off a trail.

At the time, police said, there were about 40 visitors in the 100-acre park.

Less than an hour later, after a dispatcher found no fish and wildlife officer available, police fatally shot the cougar. It was a 120-pound male 2 to 3 years old.

“Chances are if it would have been left alone, it wouldn’t have been there in the morning,” George Wuerthner, a Bend biologist and spokesman for Predator Defense, told KTVZ-TV.

Police Lt. Clint Burleigh said the department’s tranquilizer darts are for use on dogs and would take 15 minutes to affect a cougar.

“If it takes that long to tranquilize the cougar, then it can create a more dangerous situation in an uncontained area,” he said.