Strange Cat in NE OK?

Actually, that's a good idea. Leave the camera where it is, and go take a measuring stick out and put it in the same spot.

Bobcat, from wiki.

With a gray to brown coat, whiskered face, and black-tufted ears, the bobcat resembles the other species of the mid-sized Lynx genus. It is smaller than the Canada lynx, with which it shares parts of its range, but is about twice as large as the domestic cat. It has distinctive black bars on its forelegs and a black-tipped, stubby tail, from which it derives its name.

en.wikipedia.org...

I think it is some kind of nonhousecat.

The banded tail would suggest its not a native and looks too large for a domestic so the obvious guess would be a feral. Here in Aus a domestic cat turned feral can triple its size in three generations due to the amount of food available to a nocturnal hunter, and we all know how young cats can have a litter.

reply to post by Aeons


Yes, that's a great idea. Thank you.

The game cam doesn't have a flash, so tomorrow in daylight we'll put something out there that we can measure (because we probably won't be able to find the yardstick ) and let the game cam take a couple of pictures of it for comparison, and within a day or two (have to work again tomorrow) I'll post them.

Thanks!

I blew up the picture a bit and a couple things seemed out of place, for it to be her own cat.

If you look at the head of the trail cam pic, the ears seem to be shorter and farther back on the head, compared to her house cat. Looks more like a Cougar.

The shoulder and hips also look too large and muscular to be her cat.


To me it does look like a little Cougar. But the sun could very well be playing tricks.

reply to post by hhott


Your kitty kitty looks a lot like my Sabra who was very brave about "attacking me" before she had kittens
and was later fixed..ha..she, however. might run if she saw the "big cat" coming through the yard.
s205.photobucket.com...
I hope you can see the picture of my kitty that I saved at the link above.

reply to post by hhott


The last thing you want to do is to believe what any local authorities tell you about what isnt in your area. That is, if they deny any cougars are around.

Back in about 1981 while camping in Big Bend National Park in Texas on the Mexican border, I witnessed a full-grown cougar/mountain lion in the campground one night. I attempted to tell two rangers the next day. Neither accepted my sighting as valid. They denied that the park contained large cats. Not too long later, the cats were verified, and in fact, one attacked a ten-year-old boy as he was trailing along behind the rest of the family as they were hiking. He was not severely injured.

Regardless, it looks like a young cougar, and you have proof.

That really does look like a bobcat. They have them all over out her.
They will eat your chickens AND your cat. Keep your cat indoors.

Good Luck, I hope you can get more pictures of it....I still say it is a young cougar.

reply to post by hhott


I have to agree with everyone who said small cougar! I live in central Kentucky and we aren't supposed to have cougars either, but I have seen one with my own eyes. Looks like you probably got ya one there too! And if there's a young one, there's probably a momma and a poppa not too far away!

Bobcats have short stumpy tails. This cat obviously has a long tail.

I really just think this is a house cat. Maybe feral, maybe your own. The body structure of house cats can mimic a cougar. They are both felines, after all.

Of course, if it is a feral it could very well be eating your chickens.

Another possibility as to what is eating your chickens is a fox or a coyote. I don't know if they are native to the area, but it is something to look at. Don't forget about hawks and other birds of prey as well.

Are you finding the evidence of eaten chickens in the morning, like they were eaten at night? Time of day could clue you into to which native predator is eating your birds.



I'd also like to add:

It looks like someone is sitting in the driver's seat of the truck wearing a pink shirt. It could just be something in the truck or a trick of lighting, but if there is someone there, I think they would have noticed the mystery cat. Did anyone get into the truck that day?

In recent years, big wild cats have been showing up in areas where they never were before. May not be far off to say it could be a wild cat, however not a big cat, but more likely a feral feline or one that may have recently been someone's pet.

Maybe it is a savannah cat
www.savannahcatbreed.com...

reply to post by glitch88


Whatever it is is taking the birds some distance from the house before eating them. We find feathers at the "catch" site but that's all. In fact, those white spots you see in the grass close to the camera are the leftover feathers from the most recent attack .

I know that coyotes have taken some of my chickens: I actually saw it happen once but was too slow to prevent it. (I could give you all a good laugh about me running outside just out of the shower with nothing on but a robe and pair of Crocs chasing said coyote with a shotgun but .. nah) The coyotes, however, obviously are afraid of the dogs in spite of the fenced yard and never get closer to the house than about 100 yards or so.

There is no one in the truck. My husband and I are both at work in other vehicles. The interior of the truck is (faded) red and that's the back of the seat you're seeing as a pink shirt.

reply to post by hhott


Thanks for clearing that up about the truck. I did a double take when I first noticed it.

The more I think about it, the more I think you may be dealing with a predatory bird. A hawk or even an owl. I've seen a chicken get picked up by a hawk before. He swooped in, pinned it, perforated it a few times, and then took off with it. That could account for the way that feathers are left behind but the body is gone. They don't tend to be too afraid of dogs either. At least, the one we have living our property isn't. Just something to think about.

Sure looks like a cougar to me thats no common housecat its body looks diffrent to me then a normal cat id call the DNR in your area and have them look into this ..It will just keep comeing back to eat your chickens there easy prey and hes had a taste and knows were an easy meal is ..good luck i hope you get what ever is killing your chickens..

Its a leopard.
From the tail and its size, its a leopard to me.

Wow! The size and coloring looks like a Bobcat (Bobcats are bigger than housecats, but not by a lot), but that tail is definitely not a Bobcat's tail. It looks too small to be a Cougar. You might try contacting the animal control center for your county and ask for advice, obviously it's not good to have that thing wandering around your property! It might be possible for animal control to catch it in a cage (sounds like a chicken would be good bait!) and release it elsewhere.

I was at a wooded fishing resort in Branson, Mo last weekend and crossed paths with (what we believe is) a small cougar.
It was dusk and I was walking up a hill in a wooded area to my cabin. About 20 ft ahead in the dusk I saw a catlike animal trotting towards the roadway, about to cross in front of me. I have had cats all my life so I knew it was cat-like, but WRONG. I made a noise and it stopped, crouched and was still. Long tail, sleek tan body. I called out to it and it stayed still and low. Finally I started calling out to my husband in the cabin, and walked forward slowly. It turned and slithered back into the dense woods.

I got into the cabin and asked, yes, my husband had seen it earlier. Not really big enough to be a full size cougar, but definitely NOT a cat.

reply to post by hhott


Looks very like a small Puma,I take it that they are not indiginous to your area normally?

Here In Scotland,there have been numerous sightings(confirmed) of large cats that experts agree seem to be panthers that have taken the occasional sheep and chicken.