Lots of Panthers and One Wolf

I once saw a cat that was large enough that I initially mistook it for a big dog, but that was in town, in the north east, and I was slightly drunk.

I must admit to being a sceptic about claims of big cats roaming wild in the UK, however there is no way I'd rule it out.

The reason I reckon it is possible, despite no solid reliable evidence is pretty simple. Scientists and government sorts are far too quick to dismiss anecdotal evidence. Therefore even if 100 people in a small area swore blind that they'd seen a panther on the village green, most likely the claim would be dismissed.

Another reason I keep an open mind is because I appreciate just how big the open countryside is, and how easy it is for animals to hide in it. For example, I know for absolute undisputed fact that wild deer are abundant around here. I know, having seen their tracks, that they wander onto my land, and sometimes destroy my young trees. Yet I've only ever caught very brief glimpses of these animals on three (two before today) occasions. The wife has never seen a deer in the wild. Yet nobody disputes they are there. Deer are so abundant that they are actually a problem, yet few people ever seen them in the wild.

If we consider that big cats, if they are roaming wild in the UK, will be in much smaller numbers, and they are exceptional good at concealing themselves, we know from domestic cats that they often even tried to hide all evidence that they've been there (cat poo buried in the new flower beds being a prime example), then we have to consider that it is at least possible that these animals are about.

 

Good point Dave,

Your average Panther has a territory of about 200 square miles too, so the sightings could be of the same animal over a large area.

 

When was the last time you found a domestic cat skellington Armandii? They do slink off to obscure places to die.

Mind you, a road kill Panther is going to be a dead givaway. Saw a road kill Porcupine in North Devon a few years back. Couldn't argue with that one.

 

Whoa there you crazy horse:D No one sees a skelington walking around outside of the mods forum.

I'm just saying, how many domestic cats do you see compared to the amount of cat skellingtons you see? It don't add up as cats tend to hide somewhere to die. Like in Aesculus's mail box.

 

Sorry to digress slightly, but this bit reminds me of something that is funny now, but really spooked us at the time.

I'd not long since taken on my land, buying it off my dad, when my dad, my missus and me were up there doing some work. The wife, excited about the recent transaction, decided to go for a wander to have a look at what we were buying. About half an hour later, she came back, totally calm, and calmly proclaimed, "there's a body down by the beck".

My dad and I immediately stopped what we were doing and both sort of froze as we faced her. There was a pause and my dad and I looked at each other. Then I think I spoke first. "A body?" I asked. "Yeah, just down by the beck." she calmly stated. "An actual body?" my dad asked. I think by this point my dad and I had come to the conclusion that my wife's remarkably calm response to finding a dead body must have been some sort of shock response. "Yes." she said.

There was a notable pause again. I shoved my hand in my pocket to check that my mobile was there. Either my dad or I eventually asked "Can you show us?". "Yes" she calmly replied. My dad and I followed the wife down to the beck. As we walked alongside the beck, she calmly said "just along here a bit". Then, much to our dread, "There!". She pointed at the skeleton of what appeared to have once been a cat.

 

Having found a body, I was on the edge of my seat there:OUCH:

But I did suss out she had found a cat before I finished reading the post

 

Etymlogy is a beautiful thing. I like how this thread's taken skeleton to skellllingtonn in a matter of hours.

I'll notify the guys in Oxford :D

 

That's what happens when you buy land in emmerdale. Are you sure you're wife only "found" the body....

 

How many Etymologists does it take to change a Bulb?