Safe travels old man Kenn, run wild and free. ❤️
It breaks our hearts that our amazing old man Kennewick did not survive the stress and trauma of the fire evacuation in September 2020. 😢
It’s really difficult to face this because he’s been a part of the Sanctuary for so many years and had overcome so much in his time with us. But for a twenty-four-year-old wild cougar to be crated and moved in this chaos was too much even for Kennewick. We tried to do everything we could to get him to rebound, but he refused to eat and each day he lost more and more of the wildness in his eyes. 😔
Despite a full exam by the vets at Wildlife Safari and medical intervention, he had given up and we had to respect his wishes and let him go ❤️ I can’t even comprehend that I’m writing this, it’s been devastating to all of us and something we will grieve over for a lifetime. 😢
We are grateful for the time we had with him and heartbroken that he made the decision to leave, but we’ve learned over the many years that when the wildcats tell us it’s time, we must respect their wishes even though it breaks our hearts. 😔
Safe travels old man, finally free at last to leave all the confines that held you to us. 😢
Kennewick’s Story
Kennewick, a wild cougar, was found hiding in a mechanic’s garage in Kennewick, Washington in May of 2005. He was emaciated, covered in ticks, and very sick. Once captured by WDFW, he broke out his canine teeth in the crate he was in. The authorities were going to destroy him, but the public outcry made them change their minds. At the time, it was determined that he was between 9 & 11 years old.
WildCat Ridge stepped up to offer him a lifetime home. He has made a remarkable recovery and went from an emaciated 90 pounds to 180 pounds! He’s doing great and is the oldest cougar that lives at the Sanctuary. He has his own space and doesn’t have to share which is perfect for him. At first we wondered if we had done the right thing to take this cougar in but he has convinced us that it was the right thing to do. He is truly an incredible old man.
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Kennewick arrives at WCR - Article from November 2005
