Cat in Panola County

This was in the Tyler Paper on Sunday, Check it out ! ! ! !

http://www.tylerpaper.com/article/20101017/SPORTS0203/10170368/-1/SPORTS02

on here before

nice

FAKE! or is it?

Not fake I have a friend who has a place not a mile from where the pic was taken and about 2 yrs ago he was going down to fill his corn feeder and walked up on a fresh killed doe that was partially buried. As he was looking around for tracks he heard something growl, he looked up & about 75 yds away laying on a limb in a big sweetgum tree was a big cat. All he had was his pocket knife so he said he backed all the way back the way he came and didnt take his eyes off it. Went and got his gun and came back it was gone. Honest man I believe him 100% He says he doesnt want to see another one!!

interesting

If you read the article, the game warden verified that it was a real pic, taken at that feeder. I have always heard the stories about cats around east Texas, thats the first pic I have ever seen ! Gave me goose bumps when I saw it

When you come up on a fresh kill and confirm it was a big cat the hair will rise up on the back of your neck. Happened to me in San Saba county. I shot a doe right at dark and lost the trail. It was cold enough and she crossed a steep creek so I just waited until light. Found the doe buried under leaves and sticks with paw prints in the mud all around. I did not have my gun with me so I just backed out of there. I knew the cat was close. I will never go to retrieve a deer without my gun again. This was the second deer I found on this property buried. A paying customer wounded one and when I found it the owners thought he buried it. I do not think they believed it was a cat until the govt. tracker called asking permission to track a big cat onto their property.

The pic of this cat was actually taken in Deadwood in eastern panola county on a lease called Salt Creek. The GW visited the site and took pics to verify.

With the increase of game cameras out there we should start seeing pics like that more often. Those cats are all over TX and in quite a high number. I know we have them in our area if not here on our ranch. Just never saw one of them elusive cats. Now I'm eager to set my camera back up. We did catch a bobcat last year on the camera with a fresh caught squirrel in its mouth. That was cool. So why not a cougar.

I've never seen one on the wild but claims that she saw one in not so deep East Texas back in the mid 90's. We were camping at Purtis Creek State Park. This is the last place that I would expect to see a mountain lion considering all of the time that we spent tent camping in West Texas without ever seeing one. It was getting dark and after dinner I decided to try some fishing at the pier. My wife decided to stay back at camp which did not really have other people camping around it. She said that a tan colored cat the size of a medium/large dog with a long tail showed up at the edge of our campsite. She kept the flashlight pointed at it and made lots of noise but it did not act scared. I took my truck with me and this was before we all had cell phones so she had no choice but to get in the tent and wait for me to return. She watched it from the tent with the flashlight and it walked right through our campsite and back into the woods.
She still brings it up sometimes and when I tell her that it must have been a bobcat she gets mad and reminds me that bobcats don't have long tails.

I know several ppl that have seen them in Red River county. My brother said he saw one a couple of weeks ago and he took off running in the house scared, he's 24 yrs old

Over the years, there has been talk of some being seen in this particular area. 8 years ago, I DID hear one (that unforgettable hair raising on your neck scream) but it was a good distance away. Other hunters and landowners have said they have seen them but I have yet to lay eyes on one. It was 5 years ago that a single OLD track was found at a water source but still not enough solid proof. I know they might be in the area but once I put one down for the count and get pics, then I MIGHT believe it. But this IS Texas and ANYTHING is possible.

Cool to see such a good picture of one! We have them around here but have yet to get shot of them.