Another cougar attack has been reported in Foothills County, this time leaving a Scottish terrier with numerous injuries.
The attack happened on Sunday evening (Sept. 22) at a rural property near Millarville, about 15 minutes west of Okotoks.
At about 7:45 p.m. Becca Singer Strasser was putting her kids to bed when she got a call from her husband, who told her their dog was being attacked by a cougar.
"He was doing some stuff in his shop, no less than a half dozen yards away from where our dog was. She was on our driveway when he heard screaming from a dog and ran up there, and this cougar was just ravaging our little Scottie."
The Scottie, named Wednesday, was fighting back as the cougar tried to pin her down, until the Strassers' other dog, a five-month-old German pointer named Archie, chased the predator off.
Strasser estimates the attack lasted just under a minute.
After a cursory inspection, she didn't see any concerningly deep wounds on Wednesday, though the Scottie was bleeding from a few places.
Under the advice of a local vet, Strasser rushed the dog to an emergency vet in south Calgary.
"She was just in a state of shock. She was breathing heavily for the first 10 minutes of the drive and then slowly just laid down. That was a bit concerning because I was worried that she'd lost too much blood. There was blood all over me, blood all over the vehicle."
After about 18 hours at the vet, Wednesday returned home with stitches in from bite and claw marks around much of her upper body and head.
"She has so many claw marks and puncture marks... Her shoulder was ripped up pretty bad. Her neck is really swollen, it's probably the worst part, because the cougar had her whole head in its mouth. The top of her head has puncture marks, thank God it didn't fracture the skull. And underneath her jaw is punctured through," says Strasser.
The attack was caught on a security camera, which also captured footage of the cougar returning to the same spot about 20 minutes later.
Being situated close to the Sheep River, wildlife isn't an uncommon sight for the Strassers, who have seen bobcats, moose, and bears in the area before.
This incident still came as a shock though, says Becca.
"Typically, where we see those animals is in the back part of our acreage, which is closer to the river, in the thick trees. What was really striking about this particular incident is that it was on our driveway, near the range road. He was kind of hiding in the spruce trees on our driveway, but other than that, there's not a lot of coverage there. It's a high-traffic area... My kids and I were walking down that road playing with their little cars less than 40 minutes before, and I have three kids under three."
Since the incident, Becca and her brother have posted the footage to local Facebook groups to warn others in the area, and have heard about a few other sightings and incidents close by.
"Our one neighbour told us that one of his goats was killed by a cougar earlier this summer. We knew that, but when we reached out to tell him about this attack, he was like 'Oh wow, this one cougar has been circling my place a lot and it kept coming back.' When someone tells you 'I've seen a cougar,' you think 'Okay I'll be careful,' but that's not an uncommon thing around here, but an animal that's been shot at, killed a goat, and come back, is another thing."
Strasser says it's likely she'll never let her kids play in the yard alone again, and she'll be carrying bear spray and increasing security precautions around her home.
Similar attack less than two weeks prior
The incident shares similarities with another cougar attack southwest of Calgary less than two weeks ago, also involving a family pet.
Jessica Low and her five-year-old daughter encountered a cougar right outside the back door of their home on the afternoon of September 11.
The cougar was holding the body of one of the family's cats in its mouth and proceeded to paw at the window before leaving the area.
Like the incident at the Strassers' home, the cougar returned to the Lows' property later that evening.
Jessica contacted Alberta Fish and Wildlife Enforcement both times, but officers couldn't locate the animal, even after returning the next day with a cougar houndsman with dogs.
On September 12, Alberta Fish and Wildlife reported that the cougar was believed to have left the area.
Cougar sightings and activity can be reported to Fish and Wildlife Enforcement at 1-800-642-3800.
Information on cougar safety can be seen on the Government of Alberta website.