“It also indicated that wildlife officers must now hunt, and euthanize, the cougar.”
But don’t let citizens carry firearms on those trails.
Oh, no. Mustn’t allow that.
If the mother had a .357 on her hip and she knew how to use it, they wouldn’t have to hunt the cougar because it would already be dead and her son would have suffered far fewer injuries.
I’ve hiked the Cascades a lot. When you pass a big black bear on the trail, you want to be able to do more than wave your arms and hope.
I carried my .357 while fishing in bear country this summer, but I doubt anyone would shoot at a couger while it’s in the midst of an attack on a 5 yr. old.
That’s a very tough call to make without being there and knowing whether there was a safe shot possible.