ORIGINAL: ihunt1975
THE LEGEND CONTINUES..... LAST FALL, I HEARD MANY STORIES ABOUT A COUGAR IN VERMILION COUNTY, 30 MILES FROM MAHOMET. I NEVER SAW HIM PERSONALLY. BUT IN 1994, MY FATHER AND I WERE LOOKING FOR A DEER I SHOT AND SOMETHING RAN AWAY FROM THE UNRECOVERED DEER QUICKLY. JUST SO HAPPENED, THE ANIMAL WALKED THROUGH A CLEARING ABOUT 150 YARDS AWAY. IT WAS VERY LOW TO THE GROUND AND HAD VERY LONG, SLENDER TAIL. CAN'T SAY FOR SURE BUT I KNOW IT WASN'T A COYOTE AND I'VE HUNTED 100 DAYS A YEAR SINCE 1993 AND STILL HAVEN'T SEEN A BOBCAT.
TWO YEARS AGO, I ALSO HAD A DOE I SHOT DEMOLISHED BY AN ANIMALIN A SUSPICIOUS WAY. HER SKIN WAS PEELED BACK FROM NECK TO RUMP. THE MEAT WAS GONE TO BONE. THE DEER WAS THERE FOR LESS THAN 6 HOURS. COYOTES USUALLY EAT THE REAR FIRST.
ihunt1975,the part where you mentionedbeing low to the ground and a long slender tail is what got my attention,also the waddle ,and the color of it.I did pull off to the shoulder and back way up on the shoulder to see if I could get another look but it was gone over the hill by then.I usualy would have kept driving if I wasn't certain of what I saw or doubted what I saw.It definatly didn't have the colors of a bobcat,and looked much larger than one.I don't find it impossible to see cougars because of the great distances they travel,and knowing that this area is loaded with deer and other critters.