Apr 14, 2009 10:30 pm US/Central
Cougar May Be On The Loose In Western Suburbs
Report Comes 1 Year To The Day After Cougar Was Discovered In Roscoe Village
WOOD DALE, Ill. (CBS) ―
A cougar may be on the loose in west suburban Wood Dale. CBS 2's Dana Kozlov reports that cougars are not native to Illinois, so it's unnerving to some folks that the cats may not only be coming in to the state but getting very close to people as well.
Wood Dale resident Sharon Cote says what she saw in her backyard Easter morning was anything but a fancy car.
"He was just ambling over towards that broken down willow tree," Cote said. "It was a zoo animal."
Cote is convinced what she saw was a cougar. Not a coyote. Not a large house pet. A cougar. She noticed it strolling through her backyard when she took her dogs Jack and Ellie out early Sunday.
"It was amazing. He didn't even take a sidelong glance at me. And so I had my puppies right there, picked them up and ran in the house," Cote said.
And then she called 911.
"911 said, 'I just suggest you keep your small pets and your small children in the house. She said he has been spotted before,'" Cote said.
If it was a cougar, it's not the first in the area. Exactly one year ago, on April 14, 2008, a
124-pound male cougar was found in the 3400 block of North Hoyne Avenue in the Roscoe Village neighborhood. Responding to concern about the safety of neighbors, children and pets,
police shot and killed the animal after it reportedly lunged at them.
Officials later found out that the cougar was wild, and learned it originally came from South Dakota but traveled into the city from Rocky County, Wis. The cougar's remains were turned over to the Field Museum for research.
Brookfield Zoo's curator of mammals Jay Petersen says if there's another one, it's possible it's looking for a mate.
"These are young males, dispersing and they just keep going long distance," Petersen said. "They're big animals. They move fast."
Neither Wood Dale police or the Department of Natural Resources officials have confirmed any DuPage County cougar sightings this year. But the Wood Dale police department has alerted residents to the possibility.
When asked what the best advice is if you should see one, especially if it's in close proximity to yourself, "I would avoid them," Petersen said.
Clearly, it's no laughing matter if you come face-to-face with the large, powerful cat, which experts say can grow to be 150 pounds or more. In that case, after avoiding them, you should call police and report it to the
Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
CBS 2's Dana Kozlov contributed to this report.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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