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Staying Safe With Wildlife Around - Especially A Cougar



When it comes to building our homestead my number one concern is going to be safety. When my husband and I drove two days to our new property in Missouri to visit it and get the layout of the land, we found out just how raw and wild it was. The sound was nothing less than incredible. A gentle breeze blew as we explored the property, and the sun dazzled us with its warmth, however the sounds of thousands of crickets and cicadas chirping in unison let us know that we were not in the city any more. I could not either discern the difference between the sound of millions of rustling tree leaves or water flowing somewhere behind the overgrowth of brambles, weeds, trees, and various thorny bushes nearby. And there was a thick shield of forrest around our land, whether it was drawing us in or pushing us out, I was not sure.


Suddenly the reality of it hit me. We were going to need weapons to protect ourselves. The edges of our lower section of land was covered with thick brambles and an incredible amount of overgrown wild forest. There was no end in sight of the beauty of the Ozark wilderness even though we were only 15 minutes away from the nearest highway and stores. Make no mistake we are now going to be living on the edge of a wildlife reserve. That being said, I really do care about the fact that humans are edging out animals. And I really hope I don't see any hunters coming around our property but since we have an area with trees and mountain near the reserve I am sure we will.




Some of my biggest fears are mountain lions, cougars, and bears. Domesticated dogs are easy prey for a mountain lion according to OutsideOnline.com and so if you do anything do it in a group as they are less likely to attack a group of people. I am worried with the fact that I plan to garden and that will:


A. Leave me a target if I am alone and unable to see a stealth hunter like a cougar

B. Leave me a target if I am bent over

C. Gardens may attract smaller animals that will be prey for larger animals

D. Livestock may attract bigger predators like coyotes, cougars, mountain lions, bobcats and bears


The dangers became more apparent when our new neighbors told us there was a cougar in the area. In fact it had been at their home on top of their trailer the night before, so how's that for a reality check. Yikes that was a huge wake up call about the land in the Ozarks that we now call our future homestead. Not only would we need weapons but we were going to need several dogs, and not the fluffy white Maltese hair dogs I had sitting in our car.


My first human sense was to feel in fear of our family's safety. We especially need weapons if we were going to have livestock because after we did so, our future farm would be a target for said wild cat. Plus we were not sure what else might be traipsing around in the forest that surrounded our 9 acre valley and in the upper 9 acres of our Ozark forest. We wanted to enjoy that land but I had no idea what we were walking into. The best thing we can do now is to be educated and prepared. Anything else is just plain nonsense or stupidity.



Our new neighbors told us, we are going to probably shoot off guns, we hope that won't bother you. I told them by all means, so are we. Just make sure not to aim them in our direction. We all laughed. I really had a lot of respect for the new neighbors for toughing it out in the wilderness of the Ozarks with so many children. A child could easily be a target for a hungry cougar. I decided that I could not allow a wild animal to discourage me from building a beautiful home in that pretty valley. That beautiful land was going to be mine, but I was going to have to respect the area around it. I just need to get savvy about what kind of weapons I will need to protect our lives and livestock. I hope and pray I will never have to use any weapon but make no mistake I am not going to let any wild thing drag one of us away.


My first line of defense will have to be an immediate small area around our cabins that can prevent a cougar from attacking us but I know cougars can jump on anything. And you probably won't know when a cougar is stalking you. Coyotes probably won't come in too close to the yard except where they see a meal of chickens or goats or tempt our dogs to follow them out so they can pounce. And the aerial predators are going to be roaming the sky over our land so I need to figure out how I can prevent them from eating all our chickens and smaller animals. And there had been a bear or two sited in the area over the last few years and not only black bears, but brown. These facts made me really get serious about how we might ourselves. Our kids can't be in constant danger so we were going to have to have several lines of defense to protect our family, farm and gardens. And what can I do if liberal thinking gets guns outlawed. What if a cougar or bear is actually trying to kill my child?


Well, we had already got the land so there was no backing out now because of fear of the wilderness. The raw truth is we are moving forward with building something for ourselves away from the thickness of the city. I don't dislike people, in fact I enjoy them but I am frustrated with traffic, overcrowding, living within a mile of the closest dump that stinks to high heaven on hot days and the other nuances of the city.


I really appreciate how our ancestors traversed the wilderness and what dangers they must have endured especially crossing over new territory. Travelling back then was by no means as safe as it is these days. How many deaths could be attributed to the wilderness. Well I don't want my family or livestock to be at risk. As much as I love watching shows like Alaskan Bush People, Texas Ranch House, Alaska: The Last Frontier, and Mountain Men, let's get real, it seems like a lot of fun when you are watching it on TV but it's a lot different when you are doing it in person. My fears suddenly surged worrying about my family, our family pets and our future livestock.


I have to think of my family when it comes down to a cougar tearing us into shreds or dragging off the family pets. If anything I will certainly keep a gun on hand but never shoot to kill just because I can. I would always try to just scare a predator off first but once it knows there is food there, I see it as a huge problem potentially?


Now I am thankful that Missouri is a conservative state and that I immediately saw gun stores when we first pulled into town, of course that was after we saw our property. I had never owned a gun, and only shot a rifle once in my life other than in video games where I was a great head shot when it came to taking down zombies and pvp patrons. I grew up in the Mojave desert but these beautiful thick Ozark forests were not something I was used to. So my hubby and I decided we better get up to speed and quick!


When we stopped into Walmart to just pick up a knife in case we were out there and needed a last minute weapon, everyone in that little town Walmart was in the gun, hunting and fishing section. Not surprising I thought! But can a city girl turned country stay fashionable while holstering a gun in Missouri, yes I think so! It will be part of my everyday fashion as soon we get there as will be a can of deterrent while I am out gardening alone.


No wonder everyone there looked tough as nails and looked at us funny when we rode into town. We were like fresh city folk and probably easy pickins for a mountain lion. Had to laugh at that as an after effect. Thank goodness my husband has shot a gun plenty in the military. But we will be practicing our skills. Not only with a gun but I aim to learn to use a bow and arrow just as effectively, lest the mountain lions might become front porch dwellers.




HUMAN HAIR DETERRENT


A friend of mine has recommended an uncanny solution to the cougar problem. Spreading human hair around the property. Well now that is new. I think that is something I can do and will do. She said stop by a hair salon and get some clippings. Well that is downright a smart idea and possibly a old farm trick that works for coyotes as well but is it enough to scare off a cougar? I think I have enough hair just from family haircuts to keep the predators away for a lifetime. Especially with all the fur I shave off my husband when he gets a buzz. I imagine you could also put a bit of dog hair around from when you trim your dog.





RADIO DETERRENT


Another person said something about playing a radio. They never had a predator until they turned it off one night. It is recommended that you play country music because it soothes your hens and keeps them laying. I know radios are also a squirrel deterrent because they do not like noise where they sleep or light.


ULTRASONIC DETERRENT


What about an ultrasonic deterrent like a Foxwatch. It would be interesting to see if this worked for cougars as well. I found some info on it here:



That just might drive our dogs and animals crazy once they are living on the farm. But it would probably trigger the dogs to bark and warn us.


SOLAR NIGHT LIGHT DETERRENTS


Apparently there are such things to repel mountain lions, bobcats or cougars with light. There is something called a Night Guard Solar Light that can help keep them away. Even if you are trying to protect a huge pasture the size of a football field about 4 lights would cover the field. Well we have at least 9 acres on the lower level of our property but I might also install some aiming in an outward direction as well.



REPELLENT TAPE


Could repellent tape also be helpful? It is thought that this reflective tape scares away visiting wildlife with light, movement, and noise. It sounds like a cheap and easy way to add a budget friendly addition to the homestead to repel unwanted visitors.


I love this company because the solar light idea is earth, environment, wildlife, and livestock friendly.


PEPPER OR BEAR SPRAY


It might help with many preditors and I have seen this work when a biker was being hunted on a trail. Best to keep some with you while alone in the yard as well as a gun in case it doesn't work. But I also heard it is a good idea to potentially have a stick or a old tool end in case of attack.


Counter Assault is available here and I will surely invest in a few cans:




SPRINKLERS


(coming soon)


MOTION ALARMS


(coming soon)


SCARECROWS


(coming soon)


TIMED ALARMS


The Electronic Guard designed by the US Department of Agriculture could be a good option with blinking strobe lights and warbling siren that activates every 67 minutes



GOLF BALLS


Apparently you can put golf balls in your chicken coop. They have good results with snakes. I hope they don't eat them but I bet they won't return. I found this post interesting for sure!





While we fear attack by the mountain lion or cougar, we also want to prevent them from extinction so make sure to do your research on their fascinating lives at https://mountainlion.org/


Missouri Mountain Lion Portal



I encourage you to also know the laws in your areas regarding mountain lions.



If you have any ideas how to repel wild animals please feel free to share, we all want to know!


Thanks for visiting our blog!


Sorry if my grammar was a bit poor! I wrote this after complete exhaustion and will come back to fix it !



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