9mm for Mountain Lion?

Here in Calif. and Nevada, 95% of attacks are by starving , sick or wounded animals that can no longer feed themselves.
It could be a female trying to protect a kit near by, that is not noticed.

It is very rare to be attacked and tried to be carried off, by an animal.

If these lions are caught, they will usually show poor health or other reasons for their abnormal behavior.

As mentioned, if loud noises , a group of people or a gun shot will not scare the animal off
it usually means something is very wrong with the animal.
 
Cougars aren't all that big. Nor is there hide tough or thick. 9mm would be towards the bottom of what I would choose. I have carried 9mm and .357 in cat country. Usually carry at leastways a 40 cal. I would carry a .38 with a heavy hard cast if needed to.
 
70 years in lion country. I've never seen one. Glock 19 is my EDC. I think it adequate for cats. Felt under gunned when I encountered a moose with twin calves while fishing.

A boy scout in Colorado killed a lion with a pocket knife.
 
There was a recent thread posted where a jogger came across a Cougar. Lion whatever you call them. He videoed it on his phone, The cat followed him and charged a few times. Not something I would like to encounter!
I would think a well placed shot with a 9mm would have deterred it! But I do not know.


Here is the video


Cougar stalk: Utah jogger on six-minute encounter with a mountain lion - BBC News
 
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"SJ Brooks, 32, was killed on Saturday morning during a bike ride with pal Isaac Sederbaum, 31, on a remote trail near North Bend, outside of Seattle, Washington.

SJ Brooks has been identified as the biker mauled to death by a cougar in Seattle on Saturday

Sederbaum, who has serious but non-life threatening wounds, survived the attack despite his head being trapped inside the hungry big cat’s jaws at one point.

When the pair were first confronted by the cougar, they got off their bikes and managed to scare the animal away - by making noise and even hitting it with their bicycle wheels."
First picture of cyclist mauled to death by cougar who dragged him to den after clamping its jaws around his friend’s head | The Sun


"A Gresham woman killed in a suspected cougar attack near Mount Hood suffered a broken neck and had more than a dozen puncture wounds to the nape of her neck, records released this week show.

Those injuries — as well as wounds on Diana Bober's hands — "appeared to be consistent with an animal attack," medical staff performing the autopsy office determined, according to a state police report."
Oregon hiker killed in Mount Hood cougar attack suffered broken neck, puncture wounds - oregonlive.com

The article barely touches on the womans injured hands. The fact is her hands were in very bad shape, she had fought the cat for a while, it was not a quick kill.

If only she had known to clap... Same for the two guys using their bikes as weapons and shields.
 
Autonomous said:
"SJ Brooks, 32, was killed on Saturday morning during a bike ride with pal Isaac Sederbaum, 31, on a remote trail near North Bend, outside of Seattle, Washington.

SJ Brooks has been identified as the biker mauled to death by a cougar in Seattle on Saturday

Sederbaum, who has serious but non-life threatening wounds, survived the attack despite his head being trapped inside the hungry big cat’s jaws at one point.

When the pair were first confronted by the cougar, they got off their bikes and managed to scare the animal away - by making noise and even hitting it with their bicycle wheels."
First picture of cyclist mauled to death by cougar who dragged him to den after clamping its jaws around his friend’s head | The Sun


"A Gresham woman killed in a suspected cougar attack near Mount Hood suffered a broken neck and had more than a dozen puncture wounds to the nape of her neck, records released this week show.

Those injuries — as well as wounds on Diana Bober's hands — "appeared to be consistent with an animal attack," medical staff performing the autopsy office determined, according to a state police report."
Oregon hiker killed in Mount Hood cougar attack suffered broken neck, puncture wounds - oregonlive.com

The article barely touches on the womans injured hands. The fact is her hands were in very bad shape, she had fought the cat for a while, it was not a quick kill.

If only she had known to clap... Same for the two guys using their bikes as weapons and shields.
Click to expand...

Then 2018 was a really bad year in Oregon, when the first ever cougar death was reported. Ever.

"State authorities have called her death the first confirmed fatal wild cougar attack in Oregon."
 
biku324 said:
Then 2018 was a really bad year in Oregon, when the first ever cougar death was reported. Ever.

"State authorities have called her death the first confirmed fatal wild cougar attack in Oregon."
Click to expand...

I guess we'll let her family know her death was just a fluke and therefore doesn't really matter.

What sort of clap do you recommend, I mean, before the cat chews your hands to a pulp?
 
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If 9 mm isn't enough gun, who's going to learn the details?

Personally, I carry a .357M HP east of the Mississippi, and .44M hard cast west.
 
After my first close encounter (< 50') with a big cat, my wife told me to buy that .44 Mag I had been lusting after. She was with me that time.

Had I known then what I know now I'd have bought a .45 ACP 1911.
 
Autonomous said:
I guess we'll let her family know her death was just a fluke and therefore doesn't really matter.

What sort of clap do you recommend, I mean, before the cat chews your hands to a pulp?
Click to expand...

Fine by me.

I'd recommend not freaking out over one-in-history-of-a-state incident. Five years ago.
 
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Who's freaking out?
This is about calling you, someone that professes to know better, out for giving dangerous advice that could contribute to a bad ending from a cougar encounter.
 
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biku324 said:
L

The last article doesn't even have the right state - White Mountain Apache Reservation is in Arizona, as is the Salt River. Perhaps a large grain of salt should be considered on their accuracy.

Not seeing so much on the 'people attacked by mountain lion' front.
Click to expand...

You said that "clap your hands and it will simply disappear into the nearest cover. "

The last article stated that a group of rafters were fighting it off with paddles. But those people weren't attacked, right?

I guess not.

You implied that mountain lions are timid, my point is that they have been in the metro area and seem to be unafraid. But whatever.
 
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biku324 said:
Fine by me.

I'd recommend not freaking out over one-in-history-of-a-state incident. Five years ago.
Click to expand...

Believe what you want. Carry what you want. Or just practice your applause skills. It's you not me after all. But I can tell you that that was not the only cougar attack in the state. Just the only fatal one. Not every attack results in death, or even injury, but they are attacks nonetheless.
As a kid in the late '70s I personally touched and examined the body of a cougar that had attacked a rancher who was working on his fences. He hadn't heard anything, just tuned and the cat was there. He yelled and drew his gun, waved his arms, and the cat came at him. One round from his 1911 and the cat was dead. My father, a wildlife biologist who worked for the state, investigated the killing of the cat. Evidence from tracks showed the cat had stalked him. It wasn't a surprise encounter, it was a hunt. The cat was a big one, nearly 180 pounds and healthy.
Mountain lion attacks, though rare, do happen. Flat tires rarely happen, but I carry a spare at all times. Plan for the best case scenario and things might go badly for you. Plan for the worst case, if nothing happens, all good.
 
Just like with people...

...don't plan on pulling the trigger only once.

PS I was watching Autumn's Armory and she said, "9mms might not expand, but .45s never 'shrink'. I thought that was pretty good, even if I don't carry a 1911 like she has.:D
 
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Okay, folks....let's just hold on here a minute. There are a bunch of differing opinions being put out on this post. And, last I checked, that's okay. I mean, that's one of the great things about this forum. We can share differing opinions without questioning the veracity of other posters.

In my case, old habits die hard. I've been packing a .45 Colt for over forty years. Even if I didn't live in mountain lion or black bear country, I'd probably still pack my old Ruger Blackhawk whenever I went into the back country. Like I said, old habits die hard...I feel comfortable with it and, at my age, I don't see myself changing anytime soon.

Likewise, if others don't feel like carrying, that's okay. That's strictly their choice and as long as they don't get after me for carrying my .45 Colt, I'm certainly not going to get after them for choosing not to carry.
 
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