Here, Kitty Kitty…

I'm not really crazy.  As I begin this story, I have to remind of you of that fact. There will be some that will believe me, and others who think that I am making this story up. I'm not.

Since I am from Pike County, I once had a "city guy," ask me if I did a lot of deer hunting.  I replied "yes, every night on my way home with my car."  It's no secret to anyone in this area and you don't have to be an outdoors-type person to know that there's an abundant supply of wildlife in the area.  Deer, turkey, coyotes and on an on. That entire scenario changed for me the other night.

About dusk, as I made my way from Adams into Pike county, I saw something walking near the brush line, between the bluff and the road I was driving on. At first, I thought it was an exceptionally large dog. But, upon closer inspection, I realized that it wasn't.  What I saw was a cat. A BIG cat. As I was looking at it, I was thinking that I couldn't believe what I was actually seeing.

The cat appeared to be about 3 feet off the ground and perhaps 3-4 feet in length. It was light to dark brown in color and had a very long tail, that bobbed as it was walking.  This was definitely not Garfield.  I would estimate the cat weighed in at 60 to 70 pounds.

As I passed in the car, the cat seemed to not even notice me passing by, and just kept walking in a slow, leisurely pace. That's when I applied the brakes. I had to have another look.

In my worst three point turn ever, I was able to finally turn around for a second glance. That's when the cat stopped, looked over its shoulder at my car, and took off into the brush like it had never even been there. I made another reverse pass, but never saw it again.

I have seen the trail cam photos of big cats before and heard stories of those who have caught a glimpse of these animals, but never in my life, have I seen one in the wild, so close to home.

I guarantee, I'll never forget it.