A cougar was sighted last Friday morning near Gyro Park where Nelson police say it was chased up a tree by a dog.
“Err on the side of caution,” said Nelson Police Department Sgt. Howie Grant, adding that it’s likely for the animal is still in the area.
Grant said if one should see the cougar they should avoid cornering it and back away slowly as not to alarm the animal, keeping it in sight.
“Chances are the cougar will probably leave when it sees a human being, but there have been occasions where that hasn’t happened, so just be cautious,” said Grant.
Conservation officer Jason Hawkes wrote that predators will follow deer as they move down the mountain for food. He said he’s monitoring the sightings of what could be one or two cougars in Nelson.
Hawkes said he would only make moves to capture and potentially kill the animal is there were reports of the large feline being aggressive to people or pets. If any more sightings occur, Hawkes is asking that they be reported to the conservation Rapp line at 1-877-952-7277.