Protecting people, pets, and livestock is important. But protecting wildlife is important, too. Washington state is home to several species of predator and finding balance between management and coexistence is key to the success of both our residents and our wildlife.

SSB 5613 would remove the authority of county law enforcement agencies to issue permits for hunting problem black bears, bobcats, and cougars with dogs.  In 1996, a voter initiative in our state banned hunting cougars with dogs unless “cougars threatened livestock, pets, or public safety.”

There are problems with both sides of this discussion and those problems are driven by hubris. 

Removing local authority to act autonomously slows the process of hunting for elusive predators when there are problems. Empowering local authorities to act without cooperation with the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) creates opportunities for abuse of permitting rights.

In this instance, the prime sponsor of SSB 5613 openly acknowledged the bill was written to curb cougar hunting “posses” in Klickitat County, where the sheriff has reportedly sent out a team of six “hound handlers” to hunt cougars for anything from killing a goose near a house to seeing a cougar exit a sheep pasture to seeing a cougar while a person was out on a walk. 

In the reported incidents, there is some gray area about whether those cougars fell under the 1996 initiative language or not. A cougar killing a goose and leaving a sheep pasture leaves room for interpretation, particularly in the case of the sheep pasture. Was there evidence of depredation or was the animal passing through?

Sighting a cougar while on a walk, while certainly a frightening experience, is also questionable in terms of risk to public safety. Was the cougar treed? At ease? Stalking the reporting person?

While SSB 5613 seeks to limit what is occurring in Klickitat County, there are other issues to consider. Certainly, there are staff at WDFW that would prefer to see no predators in our state culled, even when they attack people or prey on livestock. But wildlife should not be hunted simply for being a predator.