This report gives the history of the puma, its perception by the public both past and present, and its management in the western United States since 1970 (the approximate date that states and provinces granted the puma legal protection). In the first part of the report, the author states that we are largely ignorant of the effects of human activity on puma populations. He discusses trends in puma management as well as estimating population numbers and the problems associated with it. The remainder of the report deals with challenging (a friendly challenge as the author states) two commonly accepted views on puma management: 1) Sport hunting of pumas is biologically necessary for the purpose of controlling puma populations, and 2) Sport hunting of pumas is ethically acceptable. The author gives a good discussion on the political, social, philosophical, ethical, biological and management factors involved when considering sport or trophy hunting of pumas. The report also includes a nice management history along with current regulations for the western United States, Alberta and British Columbia.