Mountain lion !

The DNA thing isn't necessarily true.No doubt the dna matches them to others in different areas but that doesn't mean they were once a pet.We do not live in bear country but every year there are black bear sightings in this area. I saw my first one in 1966. MY cousin has a picture of a black bear feeding on a dead hog on his place and thats going back at least 25-30 years ago.Last year there was a black bear confirmed in Covington kentucky.

The earlier bears that I know of were linked to the population in Maine.The theory is that increased logging/human presents in maine and that area of Canada caused the animals to move on the "riparian Highway"which in this area of the country is the Ohio River.
Not only do we have a traveling bear population but we also see on a lesser scale Badger,wolverine,the occasional martin as well as ringtail and I know of one armadillo sighting in the past.I would thing rather than being "pets" that were turned loose and/or escaped , most of these sightings are from animals moving away from an overpopulated area which is the natural procession of animal life,just as honeybees "swarm" each year.

To further support this,coyote was NEVER in my lifetime sighted in this area until the "texas Gas Pipeline " came through our area.The theory being they traveled behind construction crew. Now they are the most common predator in this area.I remember sitting at my grandfathers place reading the local paper and seeing the pictures of a local trapper that caught 2 gray wolfs.They had never been sighted but then again he caught them here locally.This was in 1981.No one ever figured out where they came from but they were certainly not pets.I think people say this stuff because it's the easiest answer they can give instead of actually having knowledge of how the animals got where they are.



Wade