A women has just knocked on the door & told me infront of my 3 children she found Puma sized prints in her garden.

[TheSleepFairy]

Thank fuck DD's don't know what a puma is!!!
Said negibour then went on about how huge they were & that she feared it was after her rabbits etc.

AIBU to think she is thoughless?

DD's are 8, 6 & 2 & currently think she found reindeer foot prints in her garden

pixel I agree with you. I've lived here for years & never seen anything bigger than a fox.

yeah but if they're not hysterical kids then it won't really phase them will it?

Apparently (not sure how true this is) there have been rich fuckers in the past who illegally import big cats to keep as pets
And they either escape or are deliberately released into the wild.

maybe she's got a pet puma

kara, there's no 'apparently' about it. it used to be legal to keep them as pets here.

was she wearing these slippers

"Val, that one looks quite big. how big is a puma? i thought tehy were domestic dog sized."

Hang on, hang on Boo ... I rescue dogs and domestic cats, not pumas! How the 'ell would I know! :o

EauRudolph - in the light of your "gene pool" comment, I feel it is necessary to point out that I live( in East Anglia, but I was born* in the Smoke! :o

@ US.

We even have a panther in S London - in Sydenham Woods. A man saw it when he looked out of his window at 2am.

It's possible that the things that keep pelple uptil 2am also enhance their judgement about things...

Roughly, what area of the country do you live in SleepFairy?

There was a fairly convincing documentary a while back about Big Cats in the UK, and a boy who had been mauled in a field!

[fsmile) @ usual

Oooh yes BeerTricks - you are right. Night vision goggles it is then

Oh this has just reminded me, a cheetah escaped from an animal park near me a couple of years ago- scary stuff.

valhalla's animal sanctuary.

all strays and unwanted pumas welcome

obviously.

Urban Panther of S London

My Jack Russells footprints look big in the snow!

Boo thanks for that - was a bit hesitant in sayign it was, as I wasn't too sure if it was an urban legend!

I do know it used to be legal many years ago. Didn't Henry VIII have a royal Menagerie in the White Tower?

next time anyone has puma paw prints to discuss, could we please have some photos?

not sure about king henry but I know within the last 30 years or so it was still logal. maybe even more recent.

not logal, legal!

badger?
Maine Coon or another large domestic breed?
griffin?

Will be spending Christmas (if the runways get cleared)in a place where sightings of wolves near human habitation are getting increasingly common.

If one were to appear in the garden, I would find it unbearably cruel not to wake the younger members of the family to let them know: how would anyone forgive you for letting them miss out on such an adventure?

Have your children no sense of adventure, OP?

One of the best moments of my childhood was being shown the clawmarks from where the lynx had ripped our bin bag. But a puma would have been far better...

Ooh, wolves - have you seen the moon tonight?

(seriously, its absolutely gorgeous tonight because the cold air is so clear)

There have been a fair few puma sightings round by us over the years and I do sometimes worry a bit whilst walking the dog in the wood or on the Heath . But what worries me more is the increase in wild boar sightings, they scare the living daylights out of me and several people I know saw them last summer.

Not trainers then??