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January.
Exact date and month unknown.
In 1997 an armed response unit was mobilised in South Yorkshire by police after
reports of a black panther in the Masbrough area of Rotherham. That year a number of
sightings of big cats were reported between Pateley Bridge and Ripon. An RSPCA
spokeswoman said Mr Maiden and Mr Foley had not broken the law because it only
became illegal to release wild animals into the countryside in the early 1980s.
Commenting on the apparent rise in sightings of big cats, she added: "A lot of these are
unconfirmed, but people should not necessarily be alarmed. There’s no need for people
to panic.”
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February.
4th: Little Weighton:
Farmer David Byass believes that a large cat is responsible for the slaughter of three of
his sheep. He said: “Many local people believe the beast exists and farmers are keeping
a close watch on their flocks.”
“It is very worrying, sheep grazing in the fields are very vulnerable - the sheep were
behind a three-lined electric fence, and they were still taken”
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April
5th:
The death of a shep on a common in York has been blamed on a big cat which has
been seen in the area several times.
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1997 Sightings.