When Craig Caignou heard a noise Wednesday evening outside his trailer near Harrison Hot Springs, he thought it was his cat wanting in.

He opened the door and saw Casper alright. But she was dead in the mouth of a cougar.

鈥淲hen I got out, it was five to eight feet away, standing there looking at me,鈥� Caignou said. 鈥淚 had to grab my other cat by the scruff of its neck.鈥�

Despite the light he was holding and the presence of a human so close, the cougar didn鈥檛 spook.

鈥淚t didn鈥檛 run away when I was right beside it. It just sauntered off.鈥�

The B.C. Conservation Officer Service confirmed this was the second sighting of a cougar in Harrison Hot Springs in recent days, although Caignou鈥檚 encounter isn鈥檛 listed as a 鈥渟ighting,鈥� but rather a conflict.

The first sighting was on July 31 by a resident on Miami River Drive who said a cougar was on the trail looking at her housecat through a chainlink fence.

When the BCCOS gets a report of a cougar, they try to ensure it鈥檚 actually a cougar and not a bobcat, which is a common mistake, said conservation officer Hana Anderson.

In the case of the sighting and the conflict in Harrison, Anderson said it鈥檚 consistent not only with it being a cougar but with normal predatory behaviour.

鈥淭here have been no sightings of it during the day, which is a good thing. It鈥檚 acting like a natural cougar. A cougar isn鈥檛 going to necessarily know the difference between a racoon or a housecat. It looks like natural prey.鈥�

And while the Village of Harrison Hot Springs has posted signs around about the cougar in the area, Anderson said there isn鈥檛 much more they can do since the cougar is behaving normally.

鈥淭he most important thing for people to do generally to protect their pets from any predator is to secure them, especially at night,鈥� she said.

As for Caignou, he鈥檚 upset a warning wasn鈥檛 issued after the July 31 sighting.

鈥淚f Harrison had brought out a warning when they had first seen one, my cat would probably be alive.鈥�

The interactive site shows reported sightings and conflicts across B.C.

paul.henderson@theprogress.com
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