SIGHTING: puma like big cat striking again in rural wales

A big cat farmers believe has been roaming rural West Wales for more than two years is alleged to have struck again.

Lamb farmer Lyn Williams is adamant a puma-like creature, which he has spotted on previous occasions, has mauled eight of his sheep in two weeks.

The Pembrokeshire farmer, who produces lamb at Hill Farm, Prince’s Gate, said the creature left a trail of destruction.

He said: “Over a two-week period I lost seven ewes and a ram, they were being picked off every other night.

“They were completely eaten; all that was left behind was the skin and skeletons.

“The animal had done a very neat job, you could see where the ribs had been chewed and licked clean.

“If a dog had been responsible there would have been wool about the place, but that wasn’t the case.”

Mr Williams told the Western Telegraph newspaper he would not let his children roam the Pembrokeshire countryside for fear of another attack.

Mr Williams has reported the latest incident to the Welsh Government and police.

“We have got dogs on the farmyard, but you just don’t know what this creature is capable of,” he said.

“I don’t think any of us will feel completely safe until this thing is caught.”

The latest incidents bear an uncanny resemblance to a spate of attacks reported by Wales on Sunday two years ago in the very same tiny Pembrokeshire village.

In November 2010 at least nine confirmed sightings of the beast, described as a huge jet-black cat, were made over a period of just a few days in Prince’s Gate.

Livestock had also been reported missing.

Farmer John Mathias, of Parcsaison, Princes Gate, said at the time: “A couple of years ago, I saw it carrying a big lamb in its mouth across my yard. It left a paw print in the slurry, and it was the width across of my glasses.

“I’ve seen it about 100 yards away from me, I could see its green eyes, there was no mistaking it for another animal, It looked like pictures I’ve seen of panthers in the wild.” he said.

A previous cluster of big cat sightings throughout Pembrokeshire was in 2006, with reports coming in from as far afield as Johnston, Clynderwen, Newgale, St Florence and Steynton.

Big cats are known to have a hunting range of 50 miles in one night.

The Welsh Government has confirmed that, of 11 big cat sightings logged in Wales over the past 12 months, six were in Pembrokeshire.

Big cat consultant and expert tracker Danny Nineham is adamant thFor more Infomationat large predators are roaming West Wales.

He said: “There are a lot of big cats in West Wales, I’ve seen them myself, and investigated a number of sightings in Pembrokeshire.

“We’ve got leopards, black leopards or panthers, pumas, American bobcats, you name it.”

Cats such as leopards and pumas provided popular fashion accessories in the 1960s and 1970s and could be bought legally in Harrods.

In 1976 the Dangerous Animals Act made keeping big cats illegal without an expensive licence, driving some exotic cat owners to dump their prized pets in the wild.

Due to a loophole in the law, iIt was not illegal until 1981 to release a big cat into the UK countryside.

Mr Nineham said: “These animals are not indigenous to this country, but the reason why they’re so elusive is because they are adaptable.

“In the Victorian age, these animals became common pets with the rich and elite.

“Travelling circuses would use them and of course many would have escaped.

“One thing is for sure about these cats, they are very good at finding each other.

“And although they don’t officially exist, according to the police or wildlife records, I can tell you they are certainly around.”