Farm hunter, it is plausable that there was a sighting, was it a "wild" cougar, or was it one that some idiot thought would be a "cool" pet and then took it out to turn loose?? Who knows... I can say that they do exist in the NE as I have what I believe to be a male cross my property every year. I have only seen the cat 3 times now and he is moving along so I do not have the time to get pics...but I know what I see. Whether it is an Eastern Cougar, or a pet someone has turned loose to go feral I am not sure. All it does is cross thru my acreage and thats that. The DNR did confirm a cow kill on the top ridge of my acreage as a large cat kill....that was somewhat humbling. LOL This cat just crosses thru the area I think...but I still worry when my son is out playing as a Cougar if they attack is after only one thing....FOOD!!
My guess is it is perhaps the same in your area?? Btw, Cats as a general rule go back to their wild nature more so than a domestic canine will and much faster too. Just a thought....