A family’s dog sustained serious injuries after an altercation with what they believe was a cougar.
Despite the attack, police have not yet informed their neighbors about any potential danger.
On Sunday, August 20th, the Regehr family allowed their dog outside for a chance to use the bathroom in the early hours of the morning.
However, shortly after their pet, Poppy the toy poodle, got outside, they began to hear her barking loudly before her barks turned into a “dreadful yowling” followed by silence.
On Facebook, Kyeren Regehr said that her husband Chris went outside to see what was the matter, only to see a hunched over golden-furred body in the bushes he took to be a cougar.
Chris then says he approached the predator and shook the branches of the bush it was near which effectively scared it off.
By the time Kyeren and Chris had driven the animal away, neighbours were outside with them but they couldn’t immediately find Poppy anywhere. They thought the animal may have carried her off with it.
The toy poodle was still in the yard though. She was found injured, wet and silent underneath a rocking chair on their deck.
Poppy suffered lacerations to her muzzle, she had an injured paw and a broken tooth, but the Regehrs said in their post the injuries could have been worse. She was taken to an emergency vet at around 1:30 a.m. on Sunday to make sure she would be able to make it through the worst of her injuries.
The Regehrs main concern through all this is that they live in very close proximity to Playfair Park, just off Quadra Street and they are worried that this could have happened to a child playing at the park.
Neither Saanich Police, nor the BC Conservation Officer Services (COS) warned their neighbourhood about the cougar being near before or after the incident.
In a statement, Saanich Police explained that the reason for their lack of warning stems from the absence of prior reports of cougars in the area. Furthermore, they have refrained from issuing a warning following the attack because they assert there is no way to prove that a cougar was, in fact, responsible for Poppy’s injuries.
Despite this, the Regehrs insist it was a cougar and they are trying to warn their neighbours and the rest of Saanich about the animal’s presence.
