Is 9mm enough for Mountain Lion?

Just in case you didn't have enough answers, I'd vote "yes".

Now, I never shot a mountain lion with 9mm. I haven't shot many animals with 9mm. However, I can say with certainty that .40S&W is good. No special bullets required. Regular everyday defensive hollow-points seem to be highly effective against both mountain lions and coyotes.
 
We live in Utah and go hiking nearly ever week. That's our lifestyle.

Claiming bear spray is for "morons" is, politely, pretty lacking authority on the topic.
 
Claiming bear spray is for "morons" is, politely, pretty lacking authority on the topic.
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Consensus opinion of those who live and work in AK bear country. They carry a firearm. Bear spray is ‘iffy’ at best and only seems effective in cases of ‘nuisance’/curious bears, and that’s assuming deployment of the spray is done accurately under perfect environmental conditions (where wind doesn’t interfere with the accuracy of the spray).

Against aggressive/charging bears, spray has a poor track record and these cases typically result in a dead or mauled human. Spray is ineffective on such bears, just as police use of tasers and chemical sprays (mace) on certain amped-up human aggressors has been ineffective.
 
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mountain lions

I grew up and graduated high school at the very southern end of the San Juaquin valley, close to the mountains of Tehatchapi and an old man in town kept a pack of dogs he called his lion dogs. They were mean and vicious, and definitely not pets.
Every year or so you hear in the news about another hiker, bike rider, or horse back rider being killed by a mountain lion.
The number one reason, is people are moving into their home areas, and people are not allowed to carry a gun for protection.
I also remember when they were building I - 5 in the area around Bakersfield, you could drive at night, roll your windows down and drive slow, was not a lot of traffic there late at night, could hear the rattle of the rattlesnakes.
California still has both the mountains and desert, remember the Mohave desert is there, and death valley.
 
Personally, I'd want a 10mm or a 357 revolver. It's not like you are going to get more than one, maybe 2 good shots off.
 
The number one reason, is people are moving into their home areas, and people are not allowed to carry a gun for protection.
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Oddly enough, people move into mountain lion habitat where they ARE allowed to carry guns and people still get attacked. Funny how that works.
 
I've hiked many miles in the Cascades in Washington State. I have only ever seen one cougar in the wild. It ran away. If one of them attacks you, you will never hear it coming. Worry about something else, unless you just want an excuse to buy a gun. IMHO they aren't really a concern. They don't generally want anything to do with people. Same thing with black bears.
 
I killed a big white tail buck with a 380 (LCP). It had total my friends Accord when she hit it and the buck was shuddering on the side of the road with multiple broken legs. A single 380 in the eye socket stopped it from moving any more.

It is all about shot placement.
 
I killed a big white tail buck with a 380 (LCP). It had total my friends Accord when she hit it and the buck was shuddering on the side of the road with multiple broken legs. A single 380 in the eye socket stopped it from moving any more.

It is all about shot placement.
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The question for self defense shooting then become one of what will stop an animal with shot placement that isn't through the eye, that isn't perfect.
 
If I had my druthers, I'd bring a Mossberg Shockwave

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How many shots would one reasonably expect to get on a big mountain cat?

They are not going to just sit there.

Only Hits count.
- Better hits count more.
- Bigger hits count more.
- More hits count more.

A compact Glock slimline G36 .45 ACP - loaded 6+1 w/ 230 gr. +P HP or flat nosed ball ammo.

It's an inch thick, weighs ~ 27 oz. loaded, and easy to carry.

Pretty easy to shoot well at threat ranges, and makes a nice deep hole.

That, or a 4" Ruger SP 101 .357 Mag., loaded with 158 gr. HDY XTP/HP or Federal JSP.




Red
 
Nine would probably work, with the right ammo.
I’ve never seen a big cat in the wild. However, on one backpack trip, my friend and I watched a large wolf walk past our camp, about 40yds up the hill from us.
On that trip, I carried a G23 with hot DoubleTap solids, for the possible black bear encounter.
Seeing that beautiful, magnificent animal is a memory I’ll always treasure. But I was sure glad that G23 was on my hip, with my hand on it.
Personally, I think 40 S&W is a fantastic outdoorsman cartridge, and it’s still possible to find police surplus deals…
 
The OP questions were answered repeatedly in the first couple pages of the thread. Since then discussion has been about other topics, such as how difficult it is to do, or what people feel is a better choice than a 9mm.
 
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