Cougar bills in front of House

[Hiker of the Woods]

It would be great if the room was full of hunters.

Date: Monday-March 7
Time: 3:00 P.M.
Room: HR C

HB2337: FIRST PUBLIC HEARING - Requires State Department of Fish and Wildlife to recommend rules to State Fish and Wildlife Commission regarding creation of pilot program that allows persons to use dogs to hunt or pursue cougars.

HB3326: FIRST PUBLIC HEARING - Allows use of dog to hunt cougars during final three months of general cougar hunting season if State Fish and Wildlife Commission determines that harvest quota for particular hunt zone might not be met.

HB3428: FIRST PUBLIC HEARING - Directs State Department of Fish and Wildlife to create pilot program that allows persons hunting or pursuing cougars to use dogs.

 

[califhuntn]

As a NR I think it would be great if that happened. Oregon is a very liberal state. So if it could happen there then I have an ounce of hope that such a bill could happen in California. But I doubt it. Good for Oregon.

JR

 

[Hiker of the Woods]

I hope to see some other MM members there. We all know that a huge group of the anti's will be there.

 

[Califelkslayer]

Good luck. I'm pulling for you!!!!!!!

 

[Hiker of the Woods]

Here is what I heard and learned at the hearing.

Quotes from different people against the bills:

1. Northern California no longer has cougars because they have crossed the Oregon border and Oregon hunters have killed all the cougars that used to live in Northern California.

2. Any cougar seen in the open by a house, field, town, or city; is a domesticated cougar that a poacher captured to train his dogs. The domesticated cougar must have escaped from the poacher.

3. There is more deaths and injuries from vehicles, domestic dogs, etc? Why are we worried about cougar attacks when there is a million other things out there that cause 1,000 times more deaths and injuries to humans.

4. The 3 cougar bills will lead to the end of cougars in Oregon and they will become extinct.

5. We need all these cougars to keep balance in our ecosystem. Just look at how wonderful things turned out in YNP with the wolves and elk.

6. William Ripple from OSU has proved in several studies that predators are good for the ecosystem. Why do we want to cause negative harm to the ecosystem by using dogs to hunt cougars and reach a quota?

7. ODFW should stop spending all their money and time to kill cougars and educate the public on how to live with cougars. We must start with something other than killing the cougars to fix the conflict problems.

8. ODFW has no idea of how many cougars are being harvested or poached. This is why we think the population estimate in Oregon is wrong and the cougars are in need of protection.

9. Hunters just want these bills to pass so they can go out and trophy hunt for big old toms and brag to their friends on how manly they are. Mature toms are needed to keep the younger toms in check and do the breeding with the females. Removing the mature older toms will allow young toms to have higher survival rate and cause problems with kittens and increase conflict with humans, domestic animals, and livestock.

10. The only true and best biologist/scientist,researcher(?) that should handle making a Oregon Cougar Management Plan is (name?) from the Smithsonian. Biologist and researchers in Oregon have no clue on what they are doing.

11. The voters have spoken twice and do not want hunters to use dogs to hunt cougars.

12. It would be cheaper to continue paying agents to use dogs to hunt cougars and federal and county trappers to reach quota?s rather than having any of these 3 bills to pass. Waste of tax payers dollars.

13. These bills are only about a very very small percentage of Oregon residents that have an agenda to increase the deer and elk populations so they can go out and kill more.

14. A place in Canada that allows dogs to hunt cougars has seen increase in human, pet, and livestock conflicts. Allowing dogs to hunt cougars in Oregon will only increase the number of conflicts.

These are some of the crazy and real things that we have to deal with and make sure we have the science, truth, and common sense to explain to the committee. There will be one more chance in the future for the public to give testimony before the House Committee will vote on all three bills. I think we have a good chance to get one or more passed by the House. It was great to see all the people representing hunting/shooting/wildlife groups. I know it is hard during a work day, but I would have liked to seen more individual hunters there as well. Please make sure to get your emails in to the members of the committee about these bills.

 

[Hiker of the Woods]

Here are the emails of the House Agriculture, Natural Resources Committee.

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

 

[NickW]

Didn't take long for the wacko's to hit the floor jabberin jibberish!

 

[Hiker of the Woods]

Home / News / Local
Lawmaker: Bill that OKs cougar hunts likely to pass
StoryDiscussionLawmaker: Bill that OKs cougar hunts likely to pass
By Alex Paul, For the Gazette-Times gazettetimes.com | Posted: Thursday, March 10, 2011 4:00 am

Measure would allow dogs to assist hunters

A bill to allow cougar hunting with dogs has a good chance of passing, according to its sponsor, Rep. Sherrie Sprenger, R-Scio.

House Bill 3428 had its first hearing, before the House Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources, on Monday.

Some 30 people testified for or against the bill. The Oregon Cattlemen?s Association and Oregon Farm Bureau voiced their support for the legislation, while the National Humane Society and several individuals testified against it.

?It went well because people were respectful,? Sprenger said Tuesday. ?They were passionate about their beliefs, but it went well. I am very optimistic about this bill?s passage.?

The legislator said she was prompted to offer the bill because of cougar sightings around school bus stops and buildings, as well as by concerns of constituents.

The bill would direct the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to create a pilot program that would allow cougar hunting with dogs in game management areas within Linn, Marion, Umatilla, Wallowa, Union, Baker, Grant, Douglas, Coos, Curry, Josephine and Jackson counties, and allow other counties to opt in on or after June 2014.

The program would be reviewed by the Legislature in 2015 and the bill would sunset in January 2016.

Sprenger said Ballot Measure 18 ? the initiative that banned cougar hunting with dogs ? was approved 17 years ago and since that time the cougar population has increased significantly.

Six were trapped and killed in about one month last summer on a sheep farm on Courtney Creek Drive, east of Brownsville. Two others were killed by a private trapper in the Holley area. Numerous cougars were sighted in Linn and Benton counties.

At the Monday hearing, ODFW presented data from its cougar management plan.

It reported that more than $300,000 has been spent in the last three years on funding the cougar harvest. With fewer cougars being killed by hunters, ODFW must kill the remaining animals for which tags have been issued in order to keep the population from getting out of control.?We are spending state resources when we have citizens willing and able to address the conflicts that come with overpopulation to ensure healthy deer and elk populations and the safety of our citizens,? Sprenger said.

ODFW also reported that, although difficult to calculate, the cougar population has tripled since the passage of Measure 18, with an estimated 5,700 cougars now roaming Oregon.

Committee action on the bill is expected.