CANMORE – A cougar encounter with a woman running with her dog in Canmore has prompted a warning from the province of Alberta.
Details are scant, but a notice posted by Bow Valley WildSmart says Fish and Wildlife enforcement services and conservation officers searched the area, but no cougar or signs of the wild cat were found, and there were no kills in the area. There is no information on whether or not the dog was on-leash.
“A cougar warning has been issued for the Guy Lafleur Trail between the Stewart Creek area and Dead Man’s Flats due to an unconfirmed cougar encounter with a woman running with her dog,” states the warning.
“Bear spray was deployed and no physical contact was made.”
Cougars are solitary animals and attacks on humans are extremely rare because cougars do not typically see people as prey.
Nick de Ruyter, Bow Valley WildSmart program director, said while he doesn’t know the exact details of the encounter, there are general safety rules for cougars.
He said when venturing into the woods, it is recommended people travel in groups of four or more and preferably go in daylight hours.
“Cougars are active at all times of the day, but generally cougars are more active at dusk and dawn and at night,” he said.
“Try to avoid recreating at those times and ideally try in the day time to head out on trails, but that’s not an exact science, as encounters can happen any time of the day.”
In addition, free-roaming pets may attract and be attacked by cougars and dogs are easy prey.
“Keeping dogs on leash is really important because, certainly, dogs can attract cougars, and off-leash dogs in particular,” said de Ruyter.
It is very rare for people to hear the sounds cougars make as they normally vocalize only when they are mating, feeling threatened or communicating with their kittens.
De Ruyter said that makes it even more important for people to make lots of noise to warn cougars of their presence, but also for recreationists to pay close attention to their surroundings and look for signs of wildlife, like scat.
“You don’t want to surprise wildlife,” he said. “Human voices are the best tool to alert them that you are there.”
Bow Valley WildSmart emphasizes the importance of carrying bear spray to ward off an attack.
“We call it bear spray, but it can be used on any wildlife like cougars, coyotes, wolves and elk,” said de Ruyter.
With the elk calving season around the corner in May and June, it is not uncommon for Canmore to experience more carnivore activity closer to town as predators like bears and cougars search out elk calves.
“We’re not quite in elk calving season yet, but there’s an increased risk of cougars, bears, coyotes, wolves being attracted to town by the elk calves because they are an easy meal,” said de Ruyter.
“Last year, we had a grizzly bear down by the engine bridge looking for baby elk.”
With elk and deer in the valley bottoms, and snow at higher elevations, it is also the time of year that more and more people in the Bow Valley get outside.
“We are all sharing a small, finite landscape at this time of year, and so there’s a higher, increased chance of an encounter,” said de Ruyter.
“We all need to be really aware of that and do our part.”
Alberta’s only cougar fatality occurred in January 2001, when a cougar killed Canmore’s Frances Frost, 30, as she was cross-country skiing near Lake Minnewanka in Banff National Park.
Please report all cougar sightings in Kananaskis Country immediately to 403-591-7755 and in Banff National Park to 403-762-1470.
The Outlook will update the story when more information becomes available.
