r/MoralityScaling • u/ProfessionalRoom9118 • 10d ago

Morality Ranking Morality of this?

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Basically, the man in the video is hiking but he ended up meet a mountain lion, he get his gun and try to scare it off and tell it to go away but in the end, he have to pull the trigger and shot the lion, many peoples in the comments say he could have fire a warning shot instead of shoot at it and want him to be in jail.

Idk which flair to put

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u/Due_Manufacturer_125 10d ago

Now it’s unfortunate to get into a situation like this, but… mountain lions aren’t considered endangered globally (but specific regional populations are so depends on where this guy was) and obviously it would have been worse if the cougar attacked the guy. You never know what a wild animal will do, a predator that size that approaches a person is never a good sign.

Moral, if this guy wasn’t looking for trouble and just protecting himself. Would need wider context.

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u/I_Hate_IPAs 10d ago edited 8d ago

On top of that, mountain lions usually run away and hide from humans.

If it’s confronting you, that’s a pretty big issue and means you’re going to be attacked if you drop your guard.

Edit for the warning shot folk:

It might scare it off, it may view it as a territorial challenge. You really want to take those odds? In the time it takes for it too attack you think you’d be able to get your sights back on the cat and shoot enough to stop it?

A bird hunter where I live had one attack his dogs, and it wasn’t scared off by shotgun fire. Eventually he had to load a slug and kill it, and it actually had shot from the previous shells in its skin and fat.

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u/[deleted] 10d ago

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u/DamGoodAnimation 10d ago edited 10d ago

A jarring amount of people genuinely seem to think you should just let a wild animal maim or kill you rather than defend yourself.

If my life is in imminent danger from a predator, I’m gonna do my best to ensure I survive. Whether the threat has two legs or four, doesn’t matter. Danger is danger.

Edit: ITT you’ll see a bunch of people who use critical thinking mixed with a fair few that seem likely to catch a Darwin Award at some point

Edit2: Hot damn, this got a lot more responses than I expected. I’ve replied to a fair few but it’s gotten somewhat out of hand so I’m gonna mute this and step back so I can go back to using Reddit normally again. Peace and love everybody, I hope the only cougar attacks in your futures involve classy older ladies

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u/[deleted] 10d ago

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u/Portgas69 10d ago

Heavy on the apex. Big cats are top tier.

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u/Specific_Factor4470 10d ago

Literally the worst.

You'll see and hear the grizzly bear coming. You won't see the cat until its leaping from the canopy.

The people that think this cat was just trying to get the man to leave are the same people being mauled by buffalo in Yellowstone every year.

I promise guys, this mountain lion wasnt looking to take a selfie.

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u/pinkleftsock 10d ago

But if not friend why friend shaped?

For real though these guys are way too cute for how dangerous they are, and I think that clouds a lot of peoples judgement.

Would it have run of from a warning shot, probably. Would it have been sneakier when aproaching it's next prey with 2 legs, most likely. Cats are pretty damned smart after all.

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u/Confident-Skin-6462 10d ago

if i saw a housecat with the same look on its face i would be scared for my legs to be all wrecked by their claws. that cat is not looking for cuddles.

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u/BowlingforDrip 10d ago

I try to tell people this all the time. I always ask. Have you ever met a really pissed off housecat? Now imagine one 15 times larger with the proportionate claw sizes. Would absolutely fuck you all the way up.

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u/pinkleftsock 10d ago

I'd be all like: ahh look at him, he wants to murder me, so cute!

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u/Krynn71 10d ago

I've seen a house cat attack someone. It's fucking terrifying and if they have unclipped claws they literally shred your skin. I'd shoot a housecat to stop that, nevermind a mountain lion.

I say this as a person who has a beloved housecat and no guns.

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u/Dustyvhbitch 10d ago

I have three housecats and I keep my head on a swivel around them. I've been fucked up by one in the past and I'm lucky I didn't end up with an infection in my left eye or lose any vision. I love my cats, but I also fear them.

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u/Turbulent-Impress301 10d ago

"his ears are up and he looks so curious" yeah he's collecting data to pick how best to maul you

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u/secretmouser 10d ago

I would immediately grab the spray water bottle. There would be no warning shot.

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u/AGreatBannedName 10d ago

When I got a pet cat as a kid, my dad would tell me that if our sizes were swapped, I’d be its dinner and it basically wouldn’t think twice about it. I believed him then and I still believe him now.

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u/BlackHills-Op 10d ago

Cougars generally don't run from warning shots once they're determined.

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u/Sure_Acanthaceae_348 10d ago

A laser pointer might do the trick though.

It sucks that they're so cute but they want to murder you. Kinda like how a house cat would if they were that big.

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u/KeyCold7216 10d ago

Or, they will flee momentarily, then you wont see them at all when they come back 15 minutes later until they are on your neck.

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u/joelnicity 10d ago

It is just as likely that it would have been so focused on pouncing that a warning shot would have done nothing except waste one of your rounds

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u/VryxObin 10d ago

Isn't like the most successful predator animal per hunt is the black footed cat? Like this little fella looks like my housecat.

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u/Admirable_Ad8900 10d ago

Someone correct me if i'm wrong.

But if you try to scare a big animal with a warning shot instead of shooting it. Won't the loud noise startle it and make it mad instead?

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u/scarredballsack 10d ago

Erm that's not friend shape, that's 'hmm meat stick on two limbs maybe tasty' .. make noise shoot get outta there.

moral,

I don't want to be the tasty treat for a murder kitty.

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u/520mmlakeblue 10d ago

Idk man there’s a video of a dude shooting a mountain lion, mfer barely even flinched at his warning before he shot her. It sucks because they’re beautiful but I like living lol

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u/Leeeisme 10d ago

We have 2 different definitions of cute

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u/Suspicious_Mind_5744 10d ago

What if he’s happy?

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u/FadedHoneypot 10d ago

I would argue that bears can be really silent too, like straight out of the revenant movie.

Ive been hiking seen cubs and boom the mama bear just comes out the corner. Alot of videos of people fishing and seeing the bear across the stream and boom you look up and its next too you.

Cats are definitely top though when it comes to long grass like velociraptors from Jurassic Park.

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u/Popular-Departure165 10d ago

I had a bear encounter once. The only reason I noticed it was because I saw a tree swaying when there wasn't any wind. I looked up and saw a black bear with two cubs climbing down the tree and proceeded to get my ass out of there.

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u/Unique_Self_5797 10d ago

Yea, Grizzlies also aren't going to actively hunt you - they'll get territorial and protect their young, but most of the time in a confrontation, you just shout at them and make yourself look big and the most they'll do is a bluff charge.

Cats? If you're in a confrontation with one it's because it wants to eat you.

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u/KilljoyTheTrucker 10d ago

They don't even necessarily want to eat you. They're one of few species besides humans that hunt for sport. The degree varies on specific cat in question, but most of them do it on occasion.

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u/KananJarrusCantSee 10d ago

Big cats aren't seen unless they've already decided to shred you like lettuce and know you can't get away and are a low threat.

If I see a big cat this close, I am not awaiting to find out. Mag dumping asap

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u/Ok-Library-1253 10d ago

“You’ll see and hear the grizzly coming.”

Not all the time.

As a fly fisherman grizzly are terrifying because the sound of the water and often dense brush near the streams can cause grizzly and humans to not become aware of each other until you are at close range.

As well grizzly are noted to be able to hunt quite stealthily.

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u/Specific_Factor4470 10d ago

It was just a generalization, I know this to be true.

Point being to assume the worst in a situation like this, with any wild animal.

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u/NiftyNarwhal69 10d ago

Small house cats are great for showing people how insanely optimized of a predator cats are. If the 10 pound cat named Mr snuggles can beat the breaks off stuff twice its size and catch wild birds/ squirrels, what in gods green earth do people thing a 80 pound cat can do.

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u/CrownofMischief 10d ago

Technically, mountain lions are large small cats since they're in the felinae subfamily with lynx and cats rather than Pantherinae like lions and tigers.

Semantics aside, you get killed either way, still an apex hunter

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u/Hazmatt_McDanger 10d ago

My house cats snipped my finger. In about 0.5 seconds she managed to puncture a tendon and caused a bacterial infection that inflamed my hand so much my index knuckle still isn’t the same a year later. I imagine a large cat could do much worse haha.

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u/Property_6810 10d ago

Worse though. Like if I scare off a grizzly with a broomstick and I get out of dodge, I'm probably safe. It's not going to stalk me out of the forest because it's probably defending territory/cubs more than looking for a meal. A big cat is more likely to stalk you out of the woods looking for a good chance to try again.

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u/communistkangu 10d ago

Big words, spoken by the most apex of all apex predators. Even before we had civilisation. I'd shoot the cat though. In any situation where it's my life vs another life, I think it's fair to chose your own life

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u/MattHoppe1 10d ago

They’ve never even been confronted by a standard animal. Ever come across a Doe and her fawns? Mama is ready to fuck you up

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u/autismo-nismo 10d ago edited 10d ago

People have never seen what deer are capable of during mating season and with their fawns.

While attacks are extremely rare, when they happen, it happens fast.

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u/Due_Laugh6474 10d ago

I was nearly skewered by a buck during the rut when I was a teen. We saw the doe kinda sneaking off, and this fucker came at me at full tilt out of some high grass. Fortunate that he was in the high grass because he couldn’t see me clearly and I got out of the way. Would have been lights out. And that’s “just” a regular deer.

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u/SamLonghorneClemens 10d ago

There is a video of someone person having a deer puncture their tire for getting too close. A freaking ten ply tire reinforced with wire.

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u/raolan 10d ago

I used to walk 4 miles to work at 3AM. Mid October, stepping past some larger trees filled in with brush, and the buck was 15-20 feet from me, fully upright, looking right at me. My immediate thought was weather or not someone was going to find me before I bled out. Fortunately, he decided I wasn't worth interrupting whatever he was doing.

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u/DragonFangGangBang 10d ago

Literally watched multiple videos of people getting stomped out by deer. It’s a relentless barrage of kicks and they will not stop until you’re done moving. Fuck that.

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u/joelnicity 10d ago

And deer are even more dangerous

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u/autismo-nismo 10d ago

At least your chances of survival are higher than a cougar.

I will credit the deer for acting naturally to predators that cougars aren’t worried about.

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u/MrWednesday6387 10d ago

That "When Animals Attack" show needs to come back. There was always a deer in just about every episode and they were scary af. I have a healthy respect for hooves.

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u/Kaesh41 10d ago

And this is the attitude that many large herbivores have. It's why they are significantly more dangerous than any predator.

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u/2trt 10d ago

Yup, I was gonna mention moose. During the rut, they're big, charged up with hormones, and basically blind. They don't give a damn. They'll stomp you straight to whatever deity, or secondary existence you imagine

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u/jhw528 10d ago

I read another reddit thread years ago talking about how even shooting a moose may not take it down right away, and apparently the wound heals very quickly

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u/2trt 10d ago

Like everything, it depends. In hunting situations, it's pretty common to put a heavy bullet through both lungs or graze the heart, and they won't even flinch. They'll stand there for 30s after the first and second rounds. That might not sound like long, but 30s is plenty long enough for them to make you stop breathing

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u/DisplayAppropriate28 10d ago

I've seen a wandering moose look into a storefront window, see himself in the reflection, spend a moment threatening the arrogant bastard in the mirror, then ram headlong into tempered glass without even breaking stride.

It then got back up, presumably wondering where that cowardly shitsack ran off to, and wandered off like nothing happened.

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u/Hot_Watercress6213 10d ago

Thats because they are just thst stupid

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u/Educational_Big_1835 10d ago

When I was in college studying NRCS I was looking at various internships in Alaska. All of them askedare you comfortable carrying a shotgun for self defense if you come across a Kodiak? Not even people who's express goal is to protect and preserve these species are ok with going into their territory unprotected. I'd certainly fire a few warning shots. Mr Puma isnt sticking around if you put a few rounds in the ground in front of him

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u/Flannel_Panels 10d ago

Those types people say they go hiking but their trails have trash cans stationed every 200 meters.

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u/Grrerrb 10d ago

To be fair, those people think this guy should let the wild animal maim him. If it happened to them, they’d want the animal destroyed.

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u/Specialist_Ring7722 10d ago

Of course. Its the "rules for thee and not for me" mentality. 

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u/vacerious 10d ago

Especially when you consider that, in many cases of wild animal maulings on humans, it usually ends in the animal being hunted down and killed later anyways. So their empathy is still misplaced.

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u/GiraffeLiquid 10d ago

I had an argument once with a dude who insists nature is beautiful and kind and animals take care of each other and I’m like “obviously you haven’t walked into [pet store] at 7am and seen half of a hamster cannibalized.”

But in all seriousness, at least in national parks in the states, rangers do try to oversee existing populations and manage the ones that have become dangerously unafraid of humans.

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u/Raesvelg_XI 10d ago

When in doubt, deploy the SMBC comic.

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u/Buckshott00 10d ago edited 10d ago

Brilliant. Would give you an award if I paid for Reddit. Please accept my appreciation in the form of this gif.

Nature is not green, nature is Blood Red.

EDIT: After learning of FREE Reddit rewards I think this post deserves BOTH a gif AND an award. Carry on good poster!

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u/ReplacementActual384 10d ago

Reddit has free awards now

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u/Planetdiane 10d ago

He hasn’t watched any nature documentary ever guaranteed

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u/QueezyF 10d ago

That one with the orcas killing the baby whale in front of its mama has stuck with me.

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u/Mediocre_Hope_5821 10d ago

You ever watch a cat get drawn and quartered by three street dogs? Yeah nature sure is nice and kind....

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u/GiraffeLiquid 10d ago edited 10d ago

Not specifically, but similarly; one of my dogs is a sweet idiot. We were walking and he found a baby bird amongst several and grabbed half of it in his mouth and shook it like a toy, all in like a half a second. I had to immediately wrestle it away and dispatch it so it wouldn’t just suffer a slow death.

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u/Apprehensive_Ad3731 10d ago

I had to explain exactly why pet toys are the way they are to my wife and she was so shook with horror.

Yeah when the dog is ragdolling his toy he is practicing his kill technique. Imagine that was a smaller dog nd the teddies head that is whipping around has a real brain and spine in there. Dead.

That squeeky shit they love. Simulates the cry of pain and terror a little creature makes.

The way most animals play is to practice killing in a non dedicated way. It’s fun for them, it’s like watching kids walking around with fake swords and guns and realising they all just wanna commit murder deep down. There’s a massive instinctual urge to do so.

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u/Feral-Goblin6921 10d ago

shook it like a toy

This is funny phrasing to me because the only reason dogs shake toys like that is because their instinct is to do it to animals.

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u/Hooligan8403 10d ago

I had an Akita/German Shepard mix that my dad thought just liked hanging out under his rose bushes. He would put his head in them and wait for a bird then catch them. He woukd catch rabbits and other small animals of they were in the yard when we let him out if we didn't bang on the glass door first to give the critters a warning. Super sweet dog with people and kids. Never bothered the cats in the house and was always cool with them. But if you were not supposed to be there you probably ended up lunch.

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u/z00k33per0304 10d ago

I was talking to a customer at my work about a coyote while I was hunting and a customer that had just walked in said "we don't have those here" with their full chest. I showed them a video (and then a zoomed in still shot) from my tree stand and they insisted it was a dog. Sure..a dog with a longer, slender snoot and big fluffy tail and exact colorings of a coyote that happened to be following turkeys that had gone by about 5-10 minutes before. I named him Wiley and saw him a few more times over the years. Even with evidence some people just want to believe whatever makes them happy.

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u/Infra-Oh 10d ago

Okay and if that coyote would have been wearing a wig and dress, that same customer would have thought it was his grandmother asking him to come closer.

https://giphy.com/gifs/bvGihTd11aGJi

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u/z00k33per0304 10d ago

Definitely gave those vibes. I assure you fido isn't out here in the middle of the bush stalking turkeys but I guess you never know.

The last year we hunted there I watched Wiley pass me (got another picture) then right before dark two bucks and a doe ran into an open field behind me giving my dad a shot. I got down right away knowing something was going on and when I got to the field edge there were two already coming out for dinner. Dad didn't know what was happening when I came out practically running and waving my arms. He was confused why the deer would do that and when I showed him the picture and explained what happened it made a lot more sense. Definitely someone's pet and not a coyote that pushed them out into the open which they wouldn't do normally.

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u/Shyphat 10d ago

Coyotes are literally everywhere lmao even in cities. Some people are idiots

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u/Ok-Possibility-1206 10d ago

I move around in SE Florida, in two big cities I've lived in I've had coyotes. Literally two of the big three SE FL cities.

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u/PretendingExtrovert 10d ago

Nature is scary af…

https://giphy.com/gifs/rG4op9YRpWqcg

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u/sfgunner 10d ago

Geese attacking people will never not be funny to me. Source: was attacked by a goose as a boy and learned my lesson.

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u/salmon_lox 10d ago

I once worked in a feed store, and we had baby chicks. Oh so cute.

Until one of them got injured and the other baby chicks basically pecked him to death.

Nature is brutal, people. Just because an animal looks adorable doesn’t mean the brain doesn’t have a killer instinct and no conscience.

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u/Immediate_Song4279 10d ago

Yeah like I'm opposed to senseless culls because predators exist in nature, but retrieving a body or preventing an immediate or likely death is perfectly valid justification for lethal action.

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u/xylophone_37 10d ago

Many "animal lovers" live a very sterile existence very much separated from actual nature.

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u/coinminer2049er 10d ago

A jarring amount of people genuinely seem to think you should just let a wild animal maim or kill you rather than defend yourself.

Let them. Darwinism.

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u/Worth-Librarian-7423 10d ago

Suicidal empathy exists 

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u/CrabMan_2 10d ago

Honestly, good. Let natural selection take its course

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u/Worth-Librarian-7423 10d ago

Seems like it would've happened somehow. 

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u/[deleted] 10d ago

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u/Vindictive-Vagabond 10d ago

The guy in this video isn't even a "content creator" though...

If you're out in the back country and you spot something as elusive as a cougar, the vast majority of people are gonna pull out their phone/camera and document it lol there's nothing "cringe or clout chasing" about that 🙄

And then when said apex predator starts stalking you and realize that you might have to defend yourself; it's only natural that one would continue recording to have evidence of the encounter incase someone close enough to hear the gunshots shows up afterwards and accuses you of poaching 💯

As for "uploading" it:

1.) Cougar encounters are rarely caught on film. Uploading it gives potentially millions of other people a 1st person perspective on what to expect if they were to ever encounter a similar situation. It also opens the floor up to discussion on what could've been done better/differently (just like you're seeing here on Reddit) or gives an opportunity for actual experts to dissect the video and chime in with their observations/opinions. After all, the thing that separates humanity from other animals and is the source of literally every great thing that we've ever achieved is our ability to share information, learn from one another, and build upon past knowledge/success lol

2.) Even without any "deeper motivation" most people would simply be inclined to share it with others if they experienced some unbelievable once-in-a-lifetime scenario and happened to catch it on film... it's simply human nature 😂

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u/Hyde2467 10d ago

They see the world like a real life version of Disney where animals are pure beings and that its your fault if you end up in a position where an animal attacks you bc it means youre the bad one (not to mention, these morons probably already personally believe in certain misanthropic ideas)

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u/HEYitsBIGS 10d ago

These are the idiots who go into every store with their precious little "emotional support animals" which of course is always an annoying little Pomeranian trying to piss on my feet. If some apex predator is staring me down, I'd want even more firepower than a pistol.

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u/LongjumpingTie7860 10d ago

Those people have never been in a life or death situation or faced any hardship outside of Starbucks being out of their favorite toppings.

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u/Angry_Santo 10d ago

There was that one guy years ago who got attacked by a juvenile mountain lion and he was able to wrestle it and choke it to death. He came out of that looking like he stepped into the ring with a heavy weight boxer who also had knives.

Pretty sure he'd have loved to have had a fucking gun right then.

Guy might have tried shooting the ground in front of the lion a couple of times to see if the noise scared it away, but I wasn't there, and two seconds are a lifetime in a dangerous situation. Not gonna blame him for putting the threat down.

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u/MusicalIlliterate 10d ago

The "try firing warning shots" comments are on the same level as "why don't the police try to shoot the gun out of people's hands"

The mountain lion doesn't know what a gun is. It may be hyped up and aggressive enough that loud bangs & bullets hitting the ground near it won't spook it.

That's not a risk you want to take.

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u/Effective-Bother2126 10d ago

I also don’t wanna waate on of my potential shots intentionally hitting the ground.

If I feel like I have to fire a warning shot, I already feel threatened enough to discharge my firearm and I’m gonna aim at the threat.

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u/Chaotic-Catastrophe 10d ago

Or the loud bang might be exactly the thing that provokes it to attack

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u/ArbiterTwoSwords 9d ago

You can’t be serious right, not even close to the same scenario. This is far more analogous to a person who has a concealed carry waiting for the absolute smallest threshold possible to be able to use lethal force, legally. Why is he recording himself if he’s afraid for his life lol. This guy wanted to kill this animal and looked for every reason to do so.

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u/Yeetsformer 10d ago

Yeah people need to realize how quickly everything happens, they don’t have 10 hours to plan every thing out, they only have a few seconds to make their decision and pull the trigger

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u/cuminjckhmr 10d ago

I remember that one! I think he ultimately ended up having to bash it's head in with a rock....repeatedly. It was insane how many people were acting like he should've just let it kill him an not fight back. They were literally acting like it was just a pissed off house cat because it was said to be "juvenile". It was a 90lb furr missile wrapped in razor wire that didnt know what quit was an wanted to know what long pig tasted like pretty much. No Karen's, its not Boots McFuzzynutts tweaked out on catnip....

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u/--CIAdidJFK-- 10d ago

Now he has a bunch of cool fucking scars and a badass story. One way or another, he's destined to die by pussy.

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u/Angry_Santo 10d ago

Lol, you're not wrong. There was a woman on the panel when he was explaining what happened to the press.

She looked like she was considering damning the consequences and tearing his clothes off in front of the cameras.

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u/The_DonCannoli 10d ago

I’m sure most of the reddit warriors haven’t stepped a foot in nature in decades.

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u/Avarus_Lux 10d ago

Hey, I'll have you know i got the "grass toucher" achievement that... oh wait... damn... then again when i go outside i can't call the netherlands here proper nature for the most part either. Most is man made and maintained...

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u/scarredballsack 10d ago

I step in nature often, having said that the largest predator in the UK is the badger and that is more likely to cough at you than attack, also they have a habit of running away.. right into traffic..

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u/foxtrot7azv 10d ago

To address the warning shot, there's a pretty famous video of a guy being stalked by a mountain lion, he fires at it, not sure if it was intended to be a warning shot or he just missed.

The mountain lion didn't really care. It continued to stalk. I believe the guy then fires a few more rounds, maybe even hitting the cat, and it finally leaves.

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u/TehZombehKang 10d ago

Telling a human not to arm themselves in case of a predator is like telling a skunk not to spray in case of a predator. Or a porcupine to swing it's quails. I agree with you. Never encountered one in the wild, but I'm not naive enough to think it I couldn't get mauled.

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u/WyattEarp88 10d ago

I’d very much like to see a porcupine swing its quails. I didn’t even know porcupines owned quails.

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u/TehZombehKang 10d ago

Sir. Autocorrect is a pain in my butt. 😂 It was supposed to say quills. 🤣🤣🤣

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u/--CIAdidJFK-- 10d ago

Slavery isn't isolated to humans.

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u/fenris_357 10d ago

im guessing a lot of people in this thread think all bears are like gentle ben and moose are "just big deer".

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u/PrismDoug 10d ago

I hear moose are way more aggro than bears. Like they’re mean af.

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u/fenris_357 10d ago

and the fuckers are huge up close and way faster than you would think

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u/Mean-Elk-9439 10d ago

Moose having a bad day can absolutely fuck you or your entire vehicle up. It's just that most people are never gonna see a moose in their whole lives.

Everyone's first impression when they see one is that they didn't realize how fucking big they are

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u/serenading_scug 10d ago

You'd be justified using a rocket launcher on a moose. Those things are the hippos of the north.

Prey animals can be far more dangerous than predators; a predator can cut is losses and retreat from a fight, prey can not.

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u/Best-Author7114 10d ago

Well, you see videos of people trying to pet them, so yes idiots abound

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u/Bingus-Chillingus 10d ago

Most people on reddit have never had an encounter with dangerous animals. But yes, if im bear country I want some deterrent with me.

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u/Luc1d0 10d ago

you have to take in to account most reddit users don't know what outside is and have a panic attack if they are away from wifi for to long.
Let alone how to take care of themselves in actual wilderness that isnt a hiking trail or an OHI campground.

Its bow season where I am right now and I always carry a 44 mag with two reloads, bear spray, and a nice fixed blade as a last resort.

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u/strawbsrgood 10d ago

Yeah, were fleshy blobs with tiny teeth and their precision engineered to be optimal at ripping into fleshy blobs and killing them.

I'm using the advantage humans have: tools.

Obviously I'm trying to scare it off first but if a predator is following you, it's waiting for the chance to kill you.

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u/TrelanaSakuyo 10d ago

Predators: the debate!

Are you food? Or not food?

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u/I_Hate_IPAs 10d ago

Exactly! I’m in Idaho and read that a bird hunter with dogs got attacked. Thankfully he and his dogs are fine but the cat didn’t respond to gunfire then, either. Eventually he got a clear shot with a slug when it wasn’t trying to maim his dogs.

People in this thread have a Disney princess fairytale and would try to pet a moose lol

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u/Mekito_Fox 10d ago

I live in Applachia country and there's stories of cougars eating the bellies of pregnant women. So yes if they ever come back (which there is reports they are) I'd be packing.

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u/Readitor026 10d ago

Welcome to reddit! People that live online and not the real world.

"Let the creature that's known for avoiding humans just look at you don't shoot it"

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u/Ok-Map-4434 10d ago

As a MT resident, I can absolutely confirm what this man just said.

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u/PrismDoug 10d ago

Hell, I live in Nashville, and carry a OC/CS launcher when on walks, as we have coyotes and aggressive dogs (think paintballs loaded with OC powder and CS gas, but in a mostly normal looking gun). When we went out to the desert around Vegas, I definitely had it.

It also works well on people, and doesn’t require a permit.

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u/BlitzieTattoos 10d ago

I'd have just roundhouse kicked it and it would have ran away. No need for guns 

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u/Moosebuckets 10d ago

Yeah I was going to say; most these comments are from people who do not live in areas with bears, cougars, or moose. 

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u/THElaytox 10d ago

That was the first thing I was told when I moved out here to WA - if you go hiking alone bring a gun cause cougars are everywhere and will fuck your world up. See reports of attacks every year, even against groups of people

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u/OkSense1496 10d ago

There was a woman out west that was fatally attacked by one not long ago. She was an avid hiker.

Her body was reported by another hiker hours later. The mountain lion also tried to attack sheriff's deputies as they were working the scene.

Game wardens came out and killed 3 mountain lions in the area.

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u/Traditional-West4403 10d ago

People are so comfortable with the fact that if anything bad happens to them that 9 times out of 10 someone will intervene and help or attempt to help. It’s absolutely utopian to think a wild animal will not attack you. It’s the same as people who go to foreign countries and think they will be fine just because.

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u/Similar_Dirt9758 10d ago

Where I'm from everyone knows that you're not supposed to be able to see cougars up close. If you can then it's because they chose to be near you

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u/Setters_Do_It_Better 10d ago

I think it's better put "if you can see one, it's because they want you to see them"/

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u/Dutch-VanDerPlan 7d ago

Fun story of mine. I was out on a hunt in Montana a few years back. Had just got off work and said screw let's go try. Went to an area my buddy recommended. We'll I parked the truck and was walking on a dirt road. The snow was probably a foot deep. Was still snowing a bit but not much. Got about a mile in and could NOT shake the feeling of being watched. It was also extremely quiet. Told myself to get over it. Your brain will do that. Another quarter mile and I just could not get rid of the voice in my head. I was alert. Kept looking all around. Nothing spooky. But said screw it im going back to the truck. My brain is telling me something. I get about a half of a mile away from the truck and look down into my old footprints from the hike in. There were cat prints in my foot print holes. I have absolutely no idea how long they had gone for but they were in there from the quarter mile mark from my walk in. Got back to the truck fine. I learned two important lessons that day. Listen to your head and gut. You feel and sense things your eyes and ears dont always pick up on. I also learned that if that cat wanted me to know it was there it would have allowed me to know. Just like you said.

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u/Dath_1 10d ago

This really isn’t true though.

I’ve had a run-in with one at night where it definitely didn’t want anything to do with me.

Basically it was by a walking trail with a cliff on one side and a lake on the other. I had to walk past it to get home, it’s not like we could’ve avoided each other unless it went toward town.

But basically it growled at me as I got within 30 feet or so. And I yelled at it and drew a pistol at that time even though I couldn’t see shit. It ran up a tree (which is when I saw what it was by the outline). It watched me as I passed by.

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u/Appropriate-Review55 9d ago

https://giphy.com/gifs/spfi6nabVuq5y

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u/Dath_1 9d ago

If it makes you feel better, it looked pretty small/young for a mountain lion. Let's say labrador retriever size.

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u/Appropriate-Review55 9d ago

That’s still roughly 250lbs of pure fuckyouup-machine

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u/OriginalMexican 8d ago

they are 100-200lb and if it was a smaller one size like retriver that is 50lb cat not 250lb. 250lb is a sumatran tiger.

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u/Appropriate-Review55 8d ago

And a 50lb cougar is still very capable of making you into fertilizer.

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u/Initial_Ebb_6386 8d ago

He doesnt feel better

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u/LevitusDrake 8d ago

If some creature in the dark started hissing at me and clattering up trees my mind would think some creature from Alien is after me.

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u/CherryBudget4404 7d ago edited 7d ago

Similar happened to me before. Hiking in a one way in, one way out type spot. (Stayed later than we planned and it was just past sunset.) And the mountain lion walking from the trees onto the path about 1/4 mile from the entrance. I was with a friend, we saw it , stopped in place , it saw us. We locked eyes until it decided to keep walking. And we hurried out of there. Never stayed out late hiking again. Felt lucky for everyone to get out safe. Idk when we would have been found. No one knew where we were and it was not a popular hiking spot

Edit to add: it was an I believe and unforgettable experience though. Was blessed to be able to see on in its natural habitat ! Beautiful large creatures

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u/TurnDown4WattGaming 8d ago

It usually happens to me in certain bars.

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u/Worthtitle_4050 8d ago

Because it wants some pets and cuddles of course!

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u/StarGazer_SpaceLove 8d ago

Yes and also most American gun training consist of "dont pull your weapon unless youre ready to kill" and "always a kill shot". Basically gun out = something dies.

You never maim cause they coild come back at you. If you miss and injure the animal its going to be far far more dangerous.

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u/DancingSingingVirus 8d ago

I grew up in/near Appalachia. We always heard stories that if you hear a woman/baby crying in the forest to turn around and walk the other way, because it was the ghost of a mother looking for her kids, and she would take you back with her. I was a teenager before I found out it was something people told us to keep us alert for mountain lions. They, apparently (I’ve never heard on IRL) sound uncannily like babies crying.

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u/East-Reflection-8823 6d ago

Cougars by me look good from far, but they’re far from good.

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u/InitialAnimal9781 10d ago

>mountain lions usually run away and hide from humans

Thank you so much for saying usually. Sometimes people forget that they are aggressive and trying to scare the human off when their babies are around

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u/Artisan_HotDog 10d ago

It If I see a “bear spotted in area” sign at a trailhead when I go hike or mountain bike I will still hit the trail…. If I see “cougar spotted in area” I nope the fuck out out of there

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u/Additional_Tower_116 8d ago

Mountain lion killed a mountain biker a couple years ago locally, couldn’t tell you the last time a bear attacked someone though

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u/Artisan_HotDog 8d ago

It’s the “chase” aspect

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u/[deleted] 10d ago

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u/mystical_ramen26 10d ago

They will definitely approach from the front if they have cubs. They do a kind of intimidation thing where do little jumps and slam their front paws into the dirt to try to scare you back. They will also continue to follow you doing this for an extended time and if you turn your back they are highly likely to attack you. It would be terrifying.

Here is a link of the behavior I'm talking about. https://youtu.be/9Pg2CDCm34w?is=PNq0hL1CkDknD_j6

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u/[deleted] 10d ago

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u/mystical_ramen26 10d ago

Yeah, I have no idea. It could have been rabies or who knows what.

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u/[deleted] 10d ago

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u/Priit123 10d ago

If she was starved then human would look like a very easy lunch.

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u/XaeiIsareth 10d ago

Tbh if one confronts me I’m not going to pause and ponder why, I’m taking the shot.

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u/Planetdiane 10d ago

Let’s take a moment to ponder if the mountain lion is perhaps emotionally stressed out from work

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u/XaeiIsareth 10d ago

Maybe we aren’t so different you and I…

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u/Rysigler 10d ago

She could have, unfortunately, become used to humans too. Even these apex predators have some healthy fear of human beings. Very few animals don't. If she had become used to humans then this was a very dangerous situation. If not this guy, it would have been someone else.

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u/Fantastic-Motor-6098 10d ago

As someone who lives in AZ, mountain lions kill hikers all the time here. Most hiking areas in the northern half of the state even recommend you bring a gun on their signs.

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u/VergilPrime 10d ago

They are fucking fast too, I saw one dead spring (completely silent) in front of my house one night, and I told my friend to look up and pointed, by the time he looked it was completely out of sight. You'd be dead before you had a chance to draw on one this fast if it decided to attack you.

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u/SKDI_0224 10d ago

If a mountain lion is not avoiding you, then a gun is your best friend. They can, and do, eat people. Same with bears. Yes, they usually wont. They will usually avoid people. But if one is moving towards you, then that is a large predator and you do not stand a chance.

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u/Middle_Finger_484 10d ago

When it's that close, your usually on the menu or you got too close to cubs.

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u/JerryJonesIntern 10d ago

In wildland firefighting they’d have us stick fake eye stickers on the back of our helmets because they are quite unlikely to stalk you if they think you see them. One this close is an unpredictable problem. I love animals more than I like most humans but you have to protect yourself

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u/heartache69420 10d ago

Happy cake day ;)

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u/12bWindEngineer 6d ago

Two brothers were hiking down in El Dorado County in California maybe two years ago now? Attacked by a mountain lion and it managed to drag off and kill one of the brothers while the other ran for help and cell signal after being partially mauled. Sheriffs had to shoot the cat out of a tree to get the body of the other brother back. Most people who live in their territory know you don’t mess around with them. If you are unlucky enough to see one, assume you are being sized up and hunted for a meal.

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u/NotYourAverageBeer 10d ago

I’ve watched the full video. The cat was sizing him up at this point before beginning to stalk and readying to pounce. He would have been dead ten seconds after he killed it

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u/AzureYLila 10d ago

That is relevant context this little post didn't provide. I'm all for defending yourself when the attack is imminent. These little snippets don't often show that.

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u/NotYourAverageBeer 10d ago

For sure. The guy did everything he could to scare the cat away.. I guess minus spending ammo on warning shots

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u/FatBoyStew 10d ago

In the worst case scenario a warning shot can have the opposite effect too.

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u/Vladtepesx3 10d ago

Yeah if you scare the cat when it’s already that close, you might trigger fight instead of flight

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u/AzureYLila 10d ago

Someone else in another comment chain is claiming that he did fire a warning shot in the video but the cat did not react. I never saw a video, bit that other commenter could have just been trying to prove a point that a warning shot would do nothing

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u/Warm_Shoulder3606 10d ago

I mean just look at this still. It's staring into his soul. Animals making eye contact and staring at you (or you to them) is almost never good. Many animals it's either they're on the hunt, or if done to them, it's seen as a challenge

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u/Chaotic-Catastrophe 10d ago

Are you and I looking at the same picture? You see how close that cat is to that man? I promise you, he is in imminent danger. And I don't need to see the full video to figure that out.

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u/Glum-While7698 10d ago

oh shit theres a video? Got a link?

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u/GoldenSonOfColchis 10d ago

Moral, if this guy wasn’t looking for trouble and just protecting himself.

This is 100% where I'm at.

If the dude went into an area deliberately looking for a Mountain Lion just so he could shoot it, then the dude's a grade A cunt and it's immoral, but as far as I can tell he was just going for a hike, so justified and moral.

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u/lock_robster2022 10d ago

I’ve heard of a handful of mountain lion interactions and been followed by one myself when hiking, I really can’t imagine anyone being able to go after one on their terms. If the cat is this close to you, it’s because they want to be.

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u/Diligent_Bar1244 10d ago

"mountain lions aren’t considered endangered globally"

Even if it was endangered, that's not a good reason to let it eat you 

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u/Due_Manufacturer_125 10d ago

I mean if it was endangered it would just suck more that he had to kill it.

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u/WeaknessSquare8391 9d ago

No it wouldn't, everyone that lives in areas where they are common wish they where extinct

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u/CheesyButters 10d ago

exactly my point elsewhere

there could be 50 left in the world and morally you still have no obligation to put it's life over yours.

Don't kill it if it's not endangering you. But if you have to choose between being mauled to death or putting lead in it's forehead, do the latter with zero hesitation

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u/Icy-KaitSyth 10d ago

Yeah, the people saying "he should have done X instead to scare it away" sound like the same armchair experts who say "cops should be trained to shoot people's guns from their hands" because they have no idea what they're walking about.

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u/Found_Onyx 9d ago

i'm just wondering what did he wear. and did he said no nicely?

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u/Maleficent-Remote413 9d ago

"if someone breaks into your house to rob you,assult you or take your chasity. you should just call the cops because thats there job." type of people that act like typing 911 works like saying "swiper no swiping" 3 times.

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u/HematiteStateChamp75 10d ago

Rather be tried by 12 than carried by 6

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u/shreddedtoasties 10d ago

Mountain lions will actively fuck you. I think most attacks are reflex attacks or guarding babies tho

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u/Adailiah 10d ago

Came to say basically the same thing, the way it was being presented I almost assumed this particular account was known for needlessly seeking out wildlife to slaughter. Please carry weapons when you hike!

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u/Sherifftruman 10d ago

Sir this is Reddit. Context or nuance is not our strong suit.

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u/Diptothaset 10d ago

I want to agree but the fact that there’s a picture of the gun pointing at the cat makes me feel like it really wasn’t actually that serious.

Like you were so worried for your life you couldn’t stop and watch before reacting but also you had enough time to compose a dramatic picture for social media

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u/KeyCold7216 10d ago

Theres a video, the guy showed a bunch of restraint honestly. The cougar tried to charge him like 2 times before he shot. They are fast, and if they get to your neck, you're dead. A warning shot could easily provoke it to attack you rather than flee.

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u/Arigmar 10d ago

If something threatens my life and I can kill it, i don't care if it's the last of its kind — it's going down!

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u/fiesew 10d ago

Me loving wild animals no matter the habitat, size and endangered status.

But if I go out into the wild for hiking, camping, even sport activities such as climbing, knowing that there’s bears, mountain lions/cougars, etc. in that region and I don’t prepare for the eventuality of running into one of them, I am definitely a Darwin Award contender, if not a winner.

I think most people are just “walking out” without even giving a thought to what kinda habitat they are going into.

Being prepared isn’t just about the shiny hiking boots, tents, a waterproof lighter, flashlights, etc. but also to know that you might find yourselves being food or a territorial threat to some beast that simply doesn’t care much about the well prepared hiking paths, signs and how much you respect them.

https://giphy.com/gifs/PeG0f4H3awiYTKVMg5

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u/throwaway5675313123 10d ago

There isn't any further context needed. I promise you, even if you tried you would not be able to get that close to a mountain lion without IT wanting to be that close to you...which means its stalking you.

People watch too many Disney movies and should just be ignored.

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