Cougar That Killed 9 Animals At Northwest Trek Is Found Dead

EATONVILLE, Pierce County - The cougar that killed nine zoo animals at Northwest Trek Wildlife Park before being captured and removed has been found dead, apparently hit by a car.

"The rear hip complex was broken and the back vertebrae shattered," said Rocky Spencer, district wildlife biologist for the state Fish and Wildlife Department. "It is not an uncommon cause of death for cougar. There was no indication he had been in a fight."

The male cougar's body was found west of Skykomish off Highway 2, Northwest Trek said in a news release. The site was about 21 miles north of where the animal was released May 23, after it was treed and tranquilized about two miles from the park. A radio collar was placed on the cougar at that time.

Between Feb. 14 and its capture, the cougar killed nine animals at Northwest Trek.: five bighorn sheep, two mountain goats, a whitetail deer and an elk.