Complaints About Cougars On Increase But Fewer Mountain Lions Killed In North-Central Washington

Although residents complained more than ever before about cougars, fewer of the big cats were killed last year in Chelan and Okanogan counties, wildlife officials say.

An old cougar that was one of the biggest on record was killed in the Entiat Valley last week after it had wandered into a residential area.

A smaller female cougar was shot and killed Sunday in the Icicle Creek area near Leavenworth after residents saw the cat in their yards.

A cougar also was killed two weeks ago in the Eagle Creek area north of Leavenworth after it had killed a dog on the porch of a home.

Even though there have been more complaints, only five cougars have been killed in Chelan County this winter, compared with 15 to 20 killed each year in the past, state Department of Fish and Wildlife spokesman Bob Perleberg said.

Perleberg said the decrease might be due to a new state law prohibiting the use of dogs to track cougars.

Wildlife agents have received more complaints about cougars in the last year than ever before, said Sgt. Doug Ward, who oversees agents in Chelan and Douglas counties for the Fish and Wildlife Department.

State records show that cougar encounters in Okanogan and Chelan counties increased from 1996 to 1997. Last year, 24 complaints about cougars were registered in Chelan County, up from 21 the year before. And 34 complaints were logged in Okanogan County last year, up from 23 in 1996.

Orondo taxidermist Dan Yadinak said the cat killed near Entiat was big enough to be recorded by the Boone and Crockett Club. That national organization, which keeps track of hunting records, lists in its record book any cougar with a head measurement of more than 15 square inches. The Entiat cougar measured 15-1/4 inches and weighed about 180 pounds.