Black Panther

[Shadow]

I heard on the news about 2 months ago, about a black panther or either a puma, is running loose in Ireland. I heard it escaped from a zoo and travels at night and sleeps while in hiding in daytime. Is it still going on , is it just some type of hoax or is it captured. Anyone from ireland should know. Unfortunely i am and i don't know! Please tell me. I heard last it was travelling down from armagh or something. Please don't go furhter down into Dublin!

[FP]

Shadow, I wouldn't get too worried. There have been reported sightings of big cats that have escaped from zoos etc. for years and years, and undoubtedly there are panthers and pumas etc. living in the wild in the UK. Quite simply they will keep clear of human beings as they fear us. They might take farm animals for food, but they won't come after you, so you can sleep happily in your bed!

[Ray the DJ]

Worried folk in Limerick asked the council what would happen if the panther came into the town centre? The council said, 'It will just have to fend for itself'.

[FP]

LOL Ray, It just confirms what I have told Shadow.

[Shadow]

Yeah but i ain't afraid, I just never get to see any animals besides one's on telly, i don't go to zoo's, it depressing seeing them behind bars, unless it is a specie nearly extinct.

[gazzawazza]

Right. I swear this is true. In the mid '90s (can't remember the exact year, probably �94 or �95) I was on a fishing weekend with my bro-in-law on the South Tyne near a place called Bardon Mill.

It was approaching nightfall, and my bro-in-law went to get the logfire going in our idyllic cottage. I stayed on to fish alone (never caught a damn thing which I�m quite happy with!)

After about half an hour, I was stood in the water about five yards from my river bank, when on the other side of the river I saw a large black cat walking towards me.

This was not a domestic cat. It was the size of a very large dog, I would say larger than an Alsatian.

It walked towards the river looking at me, but also looking around occasionally. I was frozen to the spot, watching this beast, wondering whether I could outrun it if it dived in to attack me, (don�t forget I was in the water), or whether I could fend it off with my rod. Then I thought it might be just coming for a drink and hoped it would leave me alone.

Then it just seemed to lose interest in me. It stopped short of the river and turned and walked along the bank a short distance to my left. Then it turned back and walked past me to the right, before retracing its steps and leaving the way it had came.

I can tell you the whole experience put the willies up me!

Of course when I got back to the cottage I told bro-in-law what I�d seen to much mirth and mockery which increased over beers in the pub that night. I've just realised that this sounds like a total "Black catter" type story (no pun intended!!!) but I know what I saw� and a couple of years later there were reports on the local news of big cat sightings in the Northumberland area�

[FP]

gazzawazza. My husband had a very similar experience and I won't go into the details. Mr Fakeplastic is a very level headed and down to earth person and very knowledgeable about animals. He saw a large cat cross over a road at night. He knows is was a cat of some sort. I am sure that are quite a few about. Over the years there must have been escapees from wildlife parks, etc.

[Shadow]

wow. Cool story gazzawazza!

[On_the_trot]

And it's totally plausible. In Northern Ireland for example it is not illegal to keep exotic animals but I think a lot of people realise that these animals such as Panthers, Pumas, etc take up a lot of time and money and therefore these owners one night take their exotic pet for a 'drive'. 'Oops I left the car boot open and snowy my panther has escaped, how did that happen?!' Shadow, that panther is not a rumour as it was about a year ago responsible for killing a number of sheep on several farms in the Antrim area.