Cougar Attack Highlights Shortage of WDFW Officers

[jasnt]

How many officers could they get for what they pay that lady advising the wag?

[bobcat]

Do they really think people are that stupid? Using a tragedy like this to try to get support for more money and more officers. Like if there were more officers this wouldn't have happened. 

[bigtex]

Do they really think people are that stupid? Using a tragedy like this to try to get support for more money and more officers. Like if there were more officers this wouldn't have happened. 

I don't think anybody is saying that?

[olyguy79]

I think people are reading too far into this.

Nobody is saying more officers would've prevented this attack. Nobody is saying more officers would control the wildlife issues we see in urban areas. The WDFW Captain simply said he has three guys to cover the most populated county in the state and he had to pull officers from other areas.

[jasnt]

Do they really think people are that stupid? Using a tragedy like this to try to get support for more money and more officers. Like if there were more officers this wouldn't have happened. 

I don't think anybody is saying that?

it seemed that way to me
One thing is for sure, more officers isn’t going to fix the departments issues!  The department needs rebuilt, wildlife laws rewritten, voter initiative management removed and a new game plan written for sustainable recreational management.

[KFhunter]

Better cougar hunting rules could have prevented this from even happening in the first place, then those "3" people could have just rode their bikes in blissful ignorance.   

[bigtex]

Better cougar hunting rules could have prevented this from even happening in the first place, then those "3" people could have just rode their bikes in blissful ignorance.

How can you say that? So if we have more aggressive cougar hunting then there will be absolutely no cougar attacks ever again?

There will always be that cougar/bear/etc. that's goes off and attacks someone. Nothing is an absolute. We can diminish the chance obviously, but there will always be the potential.

[dan11011]

I think people are reading too far into this.

Nobody is saying more officers would've prevented this attack. Nobody is saying more officers would control the wildlife issues we see in urban areas. The WDFW Captain simply said he has three guys to cover the most populated county in the state and he had to pull officers from other areas.

 

[Fl0und3rz]

WDFW doesn't need more officers to more effectively manage predators. 

I don't think anybody is saying that's the case..

That is the logical implication of the thread title.

[Fl0und3rz]

Better cougar hunting rules could have prevented this from even happening in the first place, then those "3" people could have just rode their bikes in blissful ignorance.

How can you say that? So if we have more aggressive cougar hunting then there will be absolutely no cougar attacks ever again?

There will always be that cougar/bear/etc. that's goes off and attacks someone. Nothing is an absolute. We can diminish the chance obviously, but there will always be the potential.

Seems reasonable to conclude it could have a greater impact than having more WDFW assets respond after the fact.

[Skyvalhunter]

Might be nice if WDFW didn't have their officers doing things pertaining to fish & wildlife issues and not writing parking or other no related WDFW issues.

[2MANY]

Less officers and more dead cougars.

[Southpole]

Do they really think people are that stupid? Using a tragedy like this to try to get support for more money and more officers. Like if there were more officers this wouldn't have happened. 

That’s exactly how I take the article as well. I’m quite certain the department was short on guys on a lot of other incidents but chose this one to write an article about being short on funds.

[jmscon]

"Yet Myers said he has only three enforcement officers covering the entirety of inland King County." With Seattle the fastest growing city in the country.  Probably takes a good hour minimum to respond to a call with traffic.

Took me an hour to go 15 mile inside Seattle city limits the other day with the traffic we have! If a officer had to get pulled off a boat to respond to something in Enumclaw it’s going to take hours and hours to respond!

[Bob33]

Better cougar hunting rules could have prevented this from even happening in the first place, then those "3" people could have just rode their bikes in blissful ignorance.

How can you say that? So if we have more aggressive cougar hunting then there will be absolutely no cougar attacks ever again?

There will always be that cougar/bear/etc. that's goes off and attacks someone. Nothing is an absolute. We can diminish the chance obviously, but there will always be the potential.

Seems reasonable to conclude it could have a greater impact than having more WDFW assets respond after the fact.

How do you propose that WDFW increase cougar harvest when the governor has vetoed a proposed increase from current levels?