The term “Cougar” is thrown around pretty liberally these days. This is not necessarily a bad thing; we for one appreciate the increase in traffic to the site and apologize for taking the last few months off.  However, I do not like it when a cat is called cougar just for being a couple years older than a guy.  It devalues the impact of the word, the lifestyle, and the spirit of the hunt.  So from time to time I like to open a discussion about who can be awarded the title of cougar.

As a cougalogist connoisseur I’ve discussed some criteria of what classifies a cougar before, but today I’d like to meditate on something that’s been teasing my noggin: the mellow catch.

• A guy hits on a girl.  
• Age is not discussed, but it's assumed they are peers.
• Later, it turns out there is a >10 year age gap with the woman being older.
• And they’re totally getting it on!

Analysis: First, the dude in this situation clearly has rights to the cougar hunter title for preoccupying the favors of an older lady.  However, IS the lass in this situation a cougar?

1. She didn’t make the first moves
2. She’s not financially dominating
3. She’s not working the youth to the extent of his athletic abilities

What do you say?

Personally, I’m going to give it to our kitten.  She was attractive enough to appeal to the hunter and whether she was the aggressor or not she still has a paw on the situation--just a bit mellower about it.