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[RC] cougar - Dawn Simas
<<Would a mature horse, a very calm and trusting gelding, let a predator get up close enough to rake him?>>
He would if he didn't know what hit him. Cats are ambush hunters by trade, the skill is in not letting the prey know they are close enough to get them.
I would suspect if you indeed had a cat attack, that it's an adolescent that has recently left its mothers range and needs to now establish a territory of its own, this is common at around 18 months old. This is the period in their life that they will take non-natural prey now and then in the "practicing and honing their skill level" phase, since they don't have the help of their mother for the first time. If there are plenty of deer, a study showed that this phase lasts on average 9 months, then they normally will go to the more challenging natural prey for the rest of their life. Unfortunately, they are often killed and then that territory is open and available to another young cat looking for a place to live and the cycle is perpetuated.
Can you keep your horse in during dusk/dawn? Put up motion sensor lights around his paddock? Get a donkey or a llama, more eyes to protect themselves and put up some commotion? Clear back ground cover within a 40' striking range of where your horse lives (good fire safety too). It's all about exposing the ambushing technique to prevent an attack.
Ms. Dawn Simas
Director - Wild About Cats
Wild Feline Conservation, Education, and Rescue
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