Your mood may already be lightened, but I'm quite frustrated.  It seems that just about every site on the internet is either down or sputtering.  Anyway, here is a lovely picture of me and a friend of mine for your viewing pleasure.  

Awwww... how cute.  And I thought it was a bad idea to roll around in catnip.  

What a beautiful cougar!  Is this the same cat that's in your avatar, only grown-up?  Is this one of the Wild Haven cats?

Quote :

Awwww... how cute.  And I thought it was a bad idea to roll around in catnip

There was no catnip involved in this photo shoot.  I think it was the Axe body spray.  ;)

Quote :

What a beautiful cougar!  Is this the same cat that's in your avatar, only grown-up?  Is this one of the Wild Haven cats?

It is indeed the same cat.  She's four months older here.  But, no, it's not one of Wildcat Haven's cougars.  While they've had cougar cubs in the past, all of their cats are currently adults.  This pretty girl is actually owned privately by some friends of mine up in Oregon.  It is nice to be able to visit them all at the same time, though.  I just wish they lived closer to Arizona.

I'll admit I was tempted to sneak her into my luggage before I left.    

--Last edited by John on 2007-06-07 00:20:56 --

She's such a pretty cat!  And she seems so sweet!  If only cougars made good house cats.  Sigh.

She's a very sweet cat.  The scratches on my arm and the hole in my shirt were mainly not from her.  I did lose a few layers of skin from that sandpaper tounge of hers, though.  

She is such an adorable cat.  I've read that cougars purr.  That's got to be quite an experience.

They very much do purr.  It's like a motor boat.  It's a sound that often means "get ready for me to bite you on the ear".  

listen to cougar purr

Just as adorable is the fact that they "chirp".  This is typically used as a friendly greeting.  Believe it or not, this is an adult cougar.

listen to cougar chirp

Colleges such as my alma mater (Penn State) typically choose different cougar sounds to play over the loudspeakers at sporting events.  This one is a bit more intimidating.

Go Penn State!  

--Last edited by John on 2007-06-09 21:29:41 --

Amazing!  I've never heard a cougar purr before.  The chirping is cool, sounds kinda like a bird.  I have heard a tiger chuff before.  The first time i heard that, I thought it was a friendly tiger snort.

I'm guessing she bites people on the ear in "the nicest possible way", probably out of total friendship.  I've got a little grey tabby kitty who from time to time chews on my hands or grabs me, just playing around.  She doesn't really understand that it hurts.  Sometimes, she'll give me this look like "That couldn't have possibly hurt you!"

Do you check out the Portland Zoo while you're up there?  

I'd say the cougar's chirp has about the same basic meaning as the tiger's chuff.  The tiger's is more of a passive "yeah, I see you there".  The cougar's is more of an "I want some attention".  Anybody who works with tigers can feel free to revise that interpretation.  For cougars, it's pretty accurate.

And, no, I haven't visited the Portland Zoo.  I guess I just have a hard time paying to do something when I can do it for free right down the road.  

Hey, John... great shot, gorgeous cat! I hope your friends can hang on to her.

I don't think I mentioned this in our past E-mails, but... A couple of decades back, I had the opportunity to meet the cat that Disney used when filming "Charlie the Lonesome Cougar." Yes, his name really was Charlie, and that was the day I found out that cougars can purr strongly enough to simulate a small earthquake.

As for that tongue, hey... Look at the bright side. At the rate she's going, you wouldn't have to shave 'til the next day, at least. ;-)

Happy travels. When I have more time, I can tell you some pretty amazing tales of an orca ("killer" whale) I knew many moons ago.

Quote :

John wrote : I'd say the cougar's chirp has about the same basic meaning as the tiger's chuff.  The tiger's is more of a passive "yeah, I see you there".  The cougar's is more of an "I want some attention".  Anybody who works with tigers can feel free to revise that interpretation.  For cougars, it's pretty accurate.

Yeah, this is pretty correct on cougars  They are generally pretty silent creatures and only seem to make noise when they want something...a scratch behind the ears, food, attention, etc.  I'd say a tiger-chuff is more versatile than a cougar chirp though.  Depending on the speed and frequency and body language, a chuff can mean many things that don't always translate to "hello".  Tigers will deceive you with chuffs and kisses if you're not paying attention to the other bits

Interesting.  So what else do you pay attention to when you're watching a tiger?

Just curious.  I'm not planning on getting that close to a tiger.

Quote :

Kristina L. wrote : Interesting.  So what else do you pay attention to when you're watching a tiger? Just curious.  I'm not planning on getting that close to a tiger.

Well that depends on whether I'm watching a tiger or walking a tiger...two very separate activities.  As far as watching goes, as long as there are barriers with no intent of contact I take more of a brief overview.  Ear position, tail position, body position, eye direction.  The closer you get, the more you can see.  Whisker twitches, breathing noises and pupil size.

But there's lots to learn from a distance.  I'd recommend distance watching first, surely

There's a place nearby where I can look at tigers but can't get anywhere near them, which is OK with me.  If I sweet talk them a bit, sometimes they'll act very friendly, chuffing and rubbing their faces on things.  There's a white tiger there who loves attention and gets a little annoyed when people finally walk away.  That's usually when he tries to show off most.  He'll also do this bit where he bites on this big plastic? ball that he has; he'll growl at it and chew on it and then look over at me as if to say "Aren't I an impressive tiger!"  

They're so big, they could probably hurt someone without even trying to.  So I'm just as happy not getting too close.  Still, it's very cool to feel like the tiger likes me.

Telling the mood of a tiger is actually not all that difficult; the harder part is that it can change very quickly.

Things to watch for include:
- Look at the eyes (but don't stare -- that's considered a challenge)
- If a tiger is growling or snarling, he's unhappy. You don't want to be within reach of an unhappy tiger.
- If a tiger is chuffing, he's generally happy -- but that doesn't mean he won't be playful. That goes double for cubs.
- Ears flat back means fear. A scared tiger is a dangerous tiger. And tigers are not fearless animals -- things like thunder, lawnmowers or motorcycles for example can scare them.
- If a tiger is lying down, feet out to the side mean he's relaxing. If the hindlegs are pulled up underneath the tiger, he's getting ready to pounce. (And take it from me: A fence may protect you against claws, but it won't protect you against water. Like when a tigress pounces at you from the bathtub and soaks you in 20 gallons of water.
- A tail going from side to side means you're about to get pounced on.
- A "stinky face" (mouth open, tongue out, nose wrinkled) means the tiger is trying to use his Jacobson's organ (in the roof of his mouth) to figure out a scent. This is a natural behavior, and is why the Internet is full of tigers poking their tongues out at you.
- A moan can mean a few different things. It could be that the tiger is enjoying your company and doesn't want you to leave. (Tigers in captivity are surprisingly social, in spite of their status as a solitary animal in the wild). It can also be used to express discomfort; for example, an itchy wound or a toothache.
- Never, ever, ever turn your back on a tiger. No matter how much they like you, they will pounce. It's instinct, they can't help it.

I could write a lot more, but I hope this helps satisfy some of the curiosity. And I thought this would be a good way to introduce myself, as I just learned about the site from a friend earlier today.  

Welcome to the site, Stian!

Thanks for the great tiger info!  It seems as though you and Simba ("SW") are a couple of great resources when it comes to big cats.  I've only had the opportunity to deal with tigers when there's fencing in between us.  I have, however, noticed a number of the same characteristics when dealing with cougars.  The turning your back thing is something you don't want to do with cougars, either.  It's tough when they team up on you, though.  I've definitely had the marks to prove it.  Luckily, they've only been temporary souvenirs.  ;)

I mostly deal with tigers with a fence in-between also. When I go in a tiger cage, it's usually with cubs or adolescents, although two of my "cubs" are rapidly approaching the 300lb mark.

I do get quite a bit of interaction with our local subspecies of cougar, the Florida panther. The Florida panther (puma concolor coryi) is a smaller subspecies of the western cougar (puma concolor puma) which is highly endangered (less than 100 individuals remain in the wild, living mostly in the Florida Everglades.

The sanctuary where I volunteer has roughly 60 big cats. Most are either tigers or Florida panthers, but we have lions, western cougars, leopards (spotted and black), lynx, bobcats, caracals and a number of non-felid animals as well.  

--Last edited by stian on 2007-06-21 10:05:33 --

The body language of a tiger and a cougar is not all that different. In fact, many of the mood indicators are the same as on a domestic cat. All members of the cat family are related, and even though the tiger (as a member of the panthera class, which also includes lions, jaguars and leopards) is more distantly removed from the common house cat than cougars, much of the body language is the same.  

--Last edited by stian on 2007-06-21 10:10:39 --