Two sides to the cat controversy

This latest controversy will probably drag on for some time in the city, where wild political animals roam free at taxpayer expense.

In the case of wayward Chicago cougar, I have heard both sides of the issue.

If you've been hiding from the everyday brand of predators, a 122-pound cougar was shot and killed Monday in Roscoe Village on the city's north side.

Police were called to the scene following a brief safari by animal control officers, who unfortunately failed to find the big cat. Officers subsequently tracked the animal to an alley and then dispatched it with a volley of gunfire.

Some Roscoe Village residents expressed dismay over the police actions decrying the use of extreme force to bring down the animal. One local television station interviewed a mother and her two young children. She said she was grateful for the way the police acted, because her kids could have been mauled by the cat.

It has yet to be determined whether the cougar was a wild animal or an exotic pet once caged in someone's home or garage. At this time, there's no firm indication about where the Cougar came from.

I have personally had two encounters with big cats such as the one on the North Side.

In northern Colorado, I rode along with an outfitter who was called to a mountain ranch to help locate a cougar that had killed some cattle and horses. We found the animal in the thick branches of a tall tree. The outfitter fired two tranquilizing darts, hitting the cat in the neck. We waited for over a half hour while the big cat got a sun tan. Nothing else happened. The sharpshooter then brought the cougar down with two pistol rounds.

The second incident was similar to this one, only a cougar dragged a lamb into the tree branches and feasted away. A similar ending ensued.

I called two friends who just retired from active police work. They both responded the same way when I asked them what they would have done had they been on the scene in Chicago.

The chances of something going wrong with a cougar trapped in an alley like it was presented a tremendous danger, they said. Both agreed the officers involved "did the right thing."

Many residents in the city and suburbs would be surprised if they saw the number of wild coyotes running through back yards and crossing busy intersections. These animals also are dangerous and hold the possibility of rabies.

In the Northwest suburbs alone, several dogs and house pets have been snatched from yards by hungry coyotes that needed their own form of fast food.

If this cougar was actually a wild animal, does that indicate we are in for more visits in the near future?