Washington only has about 2,000 to 2,200 cougars. But hunters, local officials, and state agents have killed more than 1,500 cougars over the past five years. In many cougar management units, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife leadership routinely allows the killing of one-third to one-half of the cougar population each year.
This is irresponsible, unethical, and dangerous. It disrupts cougar social structure, orphans kittens, and could jeopardize public safety by increasing the likelihood of human-cougar-conflicts.
For nearly a year, Washington Wildlife First and its allies have been fighting to end the overexploitation of Washington’s cougar population. Now we are just one step away from a new rule to limit cougar mortality to sustainable levels before the upcoming hunting season, but we need your help to push over the finish line!
On July 19, 2024, the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission will vote on a proposed rule to reduce cougar hunting to safer, sustainable, and ecologically sound levels.
The Commission is getting pressure to reject the rule from national anti-carnivore groups that seek to radically reduce populations of cougars, wolves, bears, and other carnivores. We need Washingtonians to stand up for their cougars!
Please take as many of the actions below as you can to urge the Commission to adopt the new rule ending the overkilling of WA’s cougars!
Scroll to the bottom of the page to learn more!
Cougar Resources
Review these documents to learn more about the proposed cougar rule.
Write
A couple of minutes is all it takes to use our form to submit comments in support of the proposed cougar rule. Although the official comment period is over, you can still be heard. Please send your comments before July 10, 2024 to give commissioners time to read your message. We provide sample language to get you started, but it is very important to personalize your comment.
You can also draw on our talking points and submit comments by emailing commission@dfw.wa.gov. Just a couple of sentences will do, but remember to (1) say where you are from, and (2) be polite and respectful.
Submit a comment now
SHARE
We know Washingtonians care about our wildlife, but few of them are aware of the urgent issues that need their attention—such as the overexploitation of the cougar population. We need to educate and involve more Washingtonians! Please help spread the word by sharing this page with family, friends, and connections who care about wildlife.
You can also engage with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Bluesky.
DONATE
The fight for a new cougar hunting rule has been long and arduous—and it is not over yet. We are a small, grassroots nonprofit facing well-funded national machines like the National Rifle Association and the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance. We need your support to see this rule through to the end, and to help us fund future actions for wolves, cougars, bears, marine mammals, and other carnivores against. Please donate today to help us pursue protections for Washington’s cougars and other wildlife.
Urge Commission to End Overexploitation of Washington’s Cougars!
A robust cougar population is essential to preserving the state’s biodiversity. Although some cougar hunting is sustainable, it is also unnecessary because cougars regulate their own population numbers, and science has proven that cougar hunting does not lower human-cougar conflicts or instances of livestock predation. To the contrary, the science strongly suggests that high levels of cougar mortality may jeopardize public safety by increasing the likelihood of human-cougar conflicts.
Leading scientists, including those at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), recommend keeping cougar mortality to below the population’s intrinsic growth rate in each management unit, which is currently estimated at 13% (+/- 3%). Over the past several years, however, WDFW has allowed mortality levels to rise far in excess of that rate–reaching about 50% of the local cougar population in some areas.
Washington’s overexploitation of cougars, especially in regions such as Stevens and Klickitat counties, impairs the health of the larger cougar population, destabilizes cougar social structure, and devastates female cougar populations, leading to widespread orphaning of kittens. By eliminating mature cougars, leaving kittens struggling to survive on their own, and putting “teenagers” in charge of cougar society, Washington’s excessive killing may also be exacerbating human-cougar conflicts. (Learn more by reading our cougar rulemaking petition).
In 2020, the Fish and Wildlife Commission voted to increase cougar hunting limits, even though cougar mortality was already at an all-time high. This disgraceful vote ignored the limits recommended by scientists at the Department of Fish and Wildlife to satisfy the demands of an anti-carnivore mob.
The Commission took the first important step to correct this mistake last December, when it voted 7-2 to approve our rulemaking petition seeking to rein in excessive and unsustainable killing of Washington’s cougars and bears. In April, the Commission cleared another big hurdle, when it approved the introduction of a new cougar hunting rule in time to prevent another season of excessive killing.
On July 19, 2024, the Commission will vote on this proposed rule, which would cap cougar hunting to no more than 13% of the population in each management unit (the intrinsic growth rate), while counting all other forms of human-caused mortality toward this limit.