My friend Jeannie Maki lives with her husband out in the country near Colville.

The other day, she was outside with her dog when she turned around to see a cougar up close and personal.

How close was it? "I could have slapped it."

Maki said it seemed clear that the big cat was thinking "Canine -- it's what's for dinner."

Bad kitty.

"It was looking at me like 'Are you going to eat it, or am I?'"

Maki carries a firearm and was prepared to protect her dog, but the cougar walked away and disappeared into some brush.

Well, sort of disappeared.

"I could see the end of the tail in there flicking and I knew it wasn't done with us. So I shot in there a few times, rounded up the dog, and backed out across the field."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrbPAt1_vc4

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