Wild cat

Spade

Member
Livestock Farmer
Had some lambs worried,initially blamed a dog, but one lamb had like claw marks on it’s hind leg and recently there has been a sighting of a big cat thought to be a puma with a tracker on In the area. How would you go about dealing with this?
 

Spade

Member
Livestock Farmer
Maybe what it needs but it needs finding and whoever let it lose knows where it’s at and why was it let loose?
 

Spade

Member
Livestock Farmer
Well do you think a dog could make thes marks ?
 

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Bald n Grumpy

Member
Livestock Farmer
Never seen a big cat but reckon we've lost lambs to them over the last 20 years
Always think that a cat bites the back of the neck not the throat.
Have had lambs totally disappear other than their gut contents, others we've found a clean skin and backbone stripped clean. Cats not as messy as dogs or foxes.
Good luck shooting one as they say they cover 100's of miles as territory
 

Danllan

Member
Location
Sir Gar / Carms
99.9% of the time people think there is a big cat about it turns out to be complete nonsense.
Yes, but... I've spent enough time in Africa - farming and with game - to know cat tracks when I see them. And I've seen some pug marks in the UK that would fit with a mid-size leopard, and others that would fit for something the size of a caracal.

A leopard will weigh something like 40-50kgs+, so I've no idea what was making tracks to fit... but a caracal typically weighs a bit under 20kgs, so a European lynx could make similar tracks - and one of these being 'freed' doesn't seem implausible to me.
 

Estate fencing.

Member
Livestock Farmer
We have big cats round here, I've seen them many times and only last week early morning a herd of deer ran out in front of me on the road followed by a big cat. I have found dead lambs 4 fields from where they where with bit marks around the neck, found one store lamb up a tree and had a dead tup I dumped it on the yard and but the next morning all that was left where his spine and guts.
 

MrNoo

Member
Arable Farmer
Location
Cirencester
We have big cats round here, I've seen them many times and only last week early morning a herd of deer ran out in front of me on the road followed by a big cat. I have found dead lambs 4 fields from where they where with bit marks around the neck, found one store lamb up a tree and had a dead tup I dumped it on the yard and but the next morning all that was left where his spine and guts.
Yes, been sightings around here, my deer stalker and his mate saw one when they were out but was a long way out for them to have a go. Although I will add that I get out with the thermal scope a lot and have never seen one yet.
 

neilo

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Montgomeryshire
Yes, but... I've spent enough time in Africa - farming and with game - to know cat tracks when I see them. And I've seen some pug marks in the UK that would fit with a mid-size leopard, and others that would fit for something the size of a caracal.

A leopard will weigh something like 40-50kgs+, so I've no idea what was making tracks to fit... but a caracal typically weighs a bit under 20kgs, so a European lynx could make similar tracks - and one of these being 'freed' doesn't seem implausible to me.

There have certainly been Lynx released/escaped. There was a small 'zoo' 8 miles from us back 20-30 years ago, although calling it a zoo is a bit of an exaggeration, but they did have some lynx there. I know they lost quite a few over the years, none of which were reported of course. Place was shut down years ago now, but they won't be the only ones.
 

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Red Tractor drops launch of green farming scheme amid anger from farmers

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As reported in Independent


quote: “Red Tractor has confirmed it is dropping plans to launch its green farming assurance standard in April“

read the TFF thread here: https://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?threads/gfc-was-to-go-ahead-now-not-going-ahead.405234/
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