Big cat in Cornwall?

[Vince Green]

Prior to 1976 it was perfectly legal to buy a big cat, a puma, cheetah, even lions and tigers and keep them at home, 100% legal. People kept them as "cool" and trendy pets. You could buy them at Club Row market in East London and even Harrods sold them.

Then one day it all changed, the Dangerous Animals Act made it illegal to own them but gave owners no way of getting rid of them. Zoos didn't want them and fearing prosecution many owners just turned them loose.

Hertfordshire where I lived and shot in the late 70s was infested with them. The ministry of agriculture hunted down and disposed of dozens of them on the quiet. Others got hit by cars or shot by farmers and gamekeepers. But they were all taken away by the M of A or the police and disappeared.

It makes me laugh when people debunk big cat sightings but these ones today must be third generation if they have survived? Also big cats in the wild go black, their fur generally darkens , don't know why it just does .

Edited May 28, 2020 by Vince Green

[Munzy]

2 hours ago, team tractor said:

I never believed in the big cats until I had one on my trail cam . It walked under my high seat around 2 yards away . 
sounds silly but I’ve had shivers when I’ve been there knowing something is watching me 

Have you still got the video?

[team tractor]

1 minute ago, Munzy said:

Have you still got the video?

Might have . In 8 years on the land and 5 years of cameras running everyday I’ve had it once for 4 seconds 

[strimmer_13]

Honey badger 

[Munzy]

Just now, team tractor said:

Might have . In 8 years on the land and 5 years of cameras running everyday I’ve had it once for 4 seconds 

I would love to see it! Send me a PM!

[ninjaferret]

Looks like golden retriever to me , tail too high for a cat and too feathery, hence retriever me thinks.

[DoolinDalton]

There was a video (on here...or not) a few weeks bac,k of a supposedly 'large cat' down South somewhere.  But when you actually used a few brain cells and worked out the alleged size of the cat against the size of the (house) bricks, it was only the size of a domestic cat!  Now...if we could only train these real 'large' cats to hunt down and 'play with'😉 certain members of our society.....Mmmmmmm!

[Benthejockey]

10 hours ago, Munzy said:

I would love to see it! Send me a PM!

And me to @team tractor

[discobob]

I saw something a few years ago by New Quay in Wales - disappearing up a bank into a hedgerow - I did post on here at the time. I asked the owners of the cottage we were staying in and they new about the big cat!!

[Rim Fire]

And i don't suppose ther is a dead sheep or lamb anywhere living off the land 😏

[big bad lindz]

On 28/05/2020 at 23:49, ninjaferret said:

Looks like golden retriever to me , tail too high for a cat and too feathery, hence retriever me thinks.

+1  have to agree thats a very light colored Golden Retriever  defiantly the tail is a give away.  I have been breeding them for years.