b tip 06

The weather is ruled out on account of it's very narrow line of travel. It affected cattle at one point and several hundred yards away and on either side there were cattle completely unaffected.

bronko22000

Well friend, I would not dismiss the possibility of a predator. But it seems strange that something would travel 30 miles and also cross a river numerous times. I don't think cougars are particularly fond of water. I do believe that weather may have been the culprit. After all, the first 2 herds were not alarmed but the other that was farther away - were they closer to the woods?
It could also have been a pack of coyotes or wild dogs too....!

haystack

bronko, The conditions were the same. It is not just one herd of cattle, it involves many herds including a herd of dairy cows that was in a barn at the time.

bronko22000

OK - I'm just questioning any other possibilities. And I guess it all just boils down to speculation as to what caused the havoc. And something that will never be determined.

b tip 06

Strange indeed, that's why i'm so damn curious as to what happened! This is something that has hold of my mind, usually with enough thought and research i can figure things out with some degree of certainty, and after months of much conversation and consideration this isall thatI and many others can come up with. And i know it seems far fetched, but there are not many otherexplanations that can't be ruled out.

haystack

Bronko, I agree with your last statement. But if something of this nature happens again a plan is in place. As I've said permission has been granted to all farmers to shot to kill. That may not be possible especially in those weather conditions, however hound hunters have been contacted to assist the farmers and the Game Dept if it happens again. Also I was told by a biologist that the USFWS would also be called in to remedy the issue.

b tip 06

What it boils down to is that it has been a substantial slap in the wallet for good people who cannot afford for this to be a reoccuring thing. Through aborted calves, vet care, fence repair and several animals that had to be put down on account of this, it was costly. At least if there were some kind of explanation people could maybe prepare themselves for it. That was the reason for this post, to see what other opinions were on this matter. And to see if others thought that it maybe could be mt. lions in the east. After all, this seemed to be what our State biologists suggested after a ton of phone calls and complaints.

the outsider

Well, up until now I refrained from posting anything on this subject because what I'm about to tell you will lead to ridicule. So be it.

In the mid 80's my wife and I were driving home from camp on a sunny May afternoon, with some friends right behind us. We were traveling on Rte 120 between Renovo and Lock Haven (closer to Lock Haven) when I saw what appeared to be a very large dog on the shoulder of the road (on the river side). I was cruising along about 55-60 mph and I slowed down to about25 mph because it appeared that the animal was going to cross the road. Sure enough it did, about 30' in front of my Bronco. My wife said "what the hell is that!?" I said it's a cat. more specifically a mountain lion. I could have run it over with my Bronco, and to this day sometimes I wish I would have. No, it wasn't a bobcat. Not even close. And when we stopped in Lock Haven for gas, our friends said the same thing - what the hell was that?

Where did it come from? What was it doing there? Heck if I know. A beautiful animal. Smooth facial features, tawny color, long tail. Big. Did it escape from captivity? I know there was a place along 120 called the "Lion's Den". I never stopped there, maybe they had one and it escaped. But I know what I saw.

haystack

Outsider, Your last sentence about the possibility of an escaped animal has been discussed and its a good one. After talking to different officials, they informed me that over a decade ago, a big time drug dealer did in fact possess 2 western Mt lions. Why and how nobody knows, but when it comes to people, especially people on drugs you can not understand none of it.