Report from Mark Fraser
Big Cat spotted by River Irvine
8 th September 1996
Mrs. Mattie Dodds and her husband were out walking their dog, along the River Irvine which runs through Hurlford and Crookedholm. They were on the Hurlford side of the river. Mattie saw across the other side an unusual animal sat by the waters edge, an animal she could not identify. The witnesses in fact have worked and owned a farm all their lives in this area. "It looked like a cat but was much larger then a domestic cat," says Mattie. "The animal was staring straight at us, I asked my husband what it could be, but he could not quite make it out."
Then the animal stood and as it turned to its side Mattie was amazed at its size and length; not to mention the great length of the tail. The way it moved reminded the witnesses of a "Jungle cat." It was fawny coloured with dark patches around its face and ears. Facially it did not resemble a normal household cat.
8 th September 1996
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