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SPRINGFIELD — There is a high probability a large cat is stalking around Clark County, an animal expert says.
More sightings of a panther have been reported in Pike Twp. and the New Carlisle area. James Mitchell, who lives on Clark Road, said he saw it lying in a field on his way home Tuesday. A tracker for many years, he said he’s sure it was a large cat.
“I would say its (back) was probably about as high as a small car’s tires,” he said. “I was sort of leery of reporting it. I didn’t think anyone was going to believe me that I saw a huge black cat or a panther or a cougar.”
A photo collected by the sheriff’s office Monday has been ruled a dog print. But Tim Harrison, an exotic animal expert and director of Outreach For Animals, said evidence he’s seen makes him “98 percent sure” there’s a large cat nearby.
Scratch marks on a tree where a neighbor said he saw a panther indicate a large cat used its back claws to climb it. A hunk of venison left as bait was “completely gone” and droppings found resemble that of an exotic cat, he said.
“We just came out to verify it since we’ve had (panthers) before in the past.”
Harrison was referring to recent panther sightings in Dayton. While he’s found similar prints here, he doesn’t think this is the same cat. Likely, he said, there are two cats on the loose. An auction several years ago would put the panthers at the right age when owners start finding them too much to handle.
“They’re getting to that sexual maturity (when) you can’t handle them anymore and all of a sudden (owners) get this ‘born free’ mentality and they get turned loose,” Harrison said.
Authorities will be analyzing the prints and droppings to determine what they’re dealing with. While not similar looking, Harrison said he couldn’t rule out that the tracks could have been made by a large domestic cat such as a Maine Coon.
“They are good-sized cats, up to 40 to 50 pounds,” he said.
“But like I say, anybody can have that (cat) but in Ohio, guess what, anybody can have a black leopard, too,” Harrison noted.
To report exotic animals or a panther sighting, call (937) 328-2560.
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