The Washington State Department of Fish & Wildlife contacted us about some orphaned cougar cubs. Scarlet is one of a litter of three who were reported as orphaned. There was also a third single kitten about three months older than the group of three. They had put a camera on the litter and after five days, their mother had not returned. The WSDFW had to assume that she would not be returning. They are unable to rehabilitate cougars, and so they called us to see if we would be able to take them. We drove to Washington to bring the litter of three and the other cub home.

grumpy sage

Sage was the smallest out of the 3 and was the shyest of the group. She is still fairly shy around people unless she knows you well. When the kittens first arrived, they lived next door to an adult male cougar named Freddie and Sage loved Freddie! She would always mimic him and follow him around through the fence.

Sage, her siblings, Outlaw and Scarlet, and the fourth cougar cub, Malice, continue to be very close. They can often all be found in one big “cuddle puddle” on one of their high platforms. They live in one of our newest enclosures which has a very large playground and tons of high ramps and platforms for them to run around on.

Sage is a beautiful girl that loves playing with her cougar friends and siblings. She has us well-trained to wait on her and we happily do so.

sage close up

Species: Cougar (Puma concolor)

Sex: Female
Born: August 2, 2016
Rescued: September 2, 2016