Sunshine Coast cougar shot after livestock deaths

Conservation officers are confident they've killed the cougar responsible for severallivestock deaths on B.C.'s Sunshine Coast.

In the last 10 days, the cat has killed and fed on a number of sheep, llamas, and chickens near Roberts Creek, north of Vancouver.

Conservation officer Dean Miller said that after a multi-day search, the cat was found and shot Monday night when it returned to a recent kill.

Locals have been worried that more than one cougar was killing livestock in the area, but Miller said the kills were the work of one large, territorial male cat.

"From the necropsy I did yesterday evening, I found a significant amount of animal flesh inside of it and also hair as well, that was pretty conclusive that it was from the llama and the sheep kill," he said.

But he said the community is on the edge of a large wilderness area and other cougar sightings are to be expected. Farmers can protect their livestock from nocturnal predators by keeping them in enclosed pens at night.