The Citizen
16th February 2012
YET another big cat sighting has been reported in the county.
Helen Stratford, of Teddington Gardens, Upton St Leonards, said she spotted a large cat in fields by her house on Saturday evening around 5.40pm.
She said she was "shocked" by the sighting, which happened as she walked her dog.
She said: "It was walking down the field about 20 metres in front of me and my dog chased it and barked and growled.
"It disappeared through the fence into a copse towards the bridle path.
"My dog was sniffing the fence where it went through and was shaking.
"The way it bound across the frozen earth was very different to how a dog runs.
"It made no sound or attempt to do anything to my dog.
"I was quite shaken up and shocked to see it.
"It had obviously made its way over from Nut Hill."
The news comes after the Countryside and Community Research Institute (CCRI), based at the University of Gloucestershire, announced it was planning a survey to find out more about the phenomenon.
The institute wants to determine the beliefs of people in the community and beyond with regard to creatures such as the Gloucestershire cat.
Senior Research Fellow Dr Matt Reed said: "As a team of researchers who work a lot in rural communities over the years we have heard lots of accounts of big beasts spotted in the countryside, carcasses of wild animals or sheep killed in unusual ways and sometimes strange animal calls.
"Now it seems that these accounts have become focused near our base and we have decided to take a closer look."
Meanwhile, big cat expert Frank Tunbridge, from Gloucester, appeared on the Gabby Logan show on Channel Five yesterday to talk about the sightings in the county.
He said: "These animals have bred amongst themselves and produced a hybrid through the generations.
"We now have a population living wild in the county."
The survey is online at http://surveys.glos.ac.uk/wildcat.
If you have any news on this item please let us know by leaving a comment or email bcib@btopenworld.com Please report any sightings at http://www.bigcatsinbritain.org/localreportform.htm If you wish to comment on any of the items please click the header of the story.
16th February 2012
YET another big cat sighting has been reported in the county.
Helen Stratford, of Teddington Gardens, Upton St Leonards, said she spotted a large cat in fields by her house on Saturday evening around 5.40pm.
She said she was "shocked" by the sighting, which happened as she walked her dog.
She said: "It was walking down the field about 20 metres in front of me and my dog chased it and barked and growled.
"It disappeared through the fence into a copse towards the bridle path.
"My dog was sniffing the fence where it went through and was shaking.
"The way it bound across the frozen earth was very different to how a dog runs.
"It made no sound or attempt to do anything to my dog.
"I was quite shaken up and shocked to see it.
"It had obviously made its way over from Nut Hill."
The news comes after the Countryside and Community Research Institute (CCRI), based at the University of Gloucestershire, announced it was planning a survey to find out more about the phenomenon.
The institute wants to determine the beliefs of people in the community and beyond with regard to creatures such as the Gloucestershire cat.
Senior Research Fellow Dr Matt Reed said: "As a team of researchers who work a lot in rural communities over the years we have heard lots of accounts of big beasts spotted in the countryside, carcasses of wild animals or sheep killed in unusual ways and sometimes strange animal calls.
"Now it seems that these accounts have become focused near our base and we have decided to take a closer look."
Meanwhile, big cat expert Frank Tunbridge, from Gloucester, appeared on the Gabby Logan show on Channel Five yesterday to talk about the sightings in the county.
He said: "These animals have bred amongst themselves and produced a hybrid through the generations.
"We now have a population living wild in the county."
The survey is online at http://surveys.glos.ac.uk/wildcat.
If you have any news on this item please let us know by leaving a comment or email bcib@btopenworld.com Please report any sightings at http://www.bigcatsinbritain.org/localreportform.htm If you wish to comment on any of the items please click the header of the story.
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