Cougars, like most felines, are curious critters and will roam far and wide looking for something they can eat or play with, or a good quiet place where they can live undisturbed. Males especially will roam hundreds of miles looking for females. I don't have any doubt that there are transient animals that pass through Tennessee from time to time. Whether or not we have any resident cats is another story, especially in the more densely settled areas.

A few years ago we had a humongous male bobcat that passed through from time to time. I tracked him in a fresh snow one day all the way across our place. It was interesting to see how he would detour to investigate a hollow tree or log, then return to his route along an old logging road. He must have covered a couple of miles wandering on our property, then crossed the creek onto the neighbor's place and went on east.

Haven't seen any trace of him in a couple of years now.

Fish and Game people here are the same Murphy.

They deny the existence of many things that we see in the woods.

Big cats, bears... they don't exist... kinda.

A few years ago... a lady hit (and killed) a black bear on the Bluegrass Parkway at about the 42 mile marker.

There was a picture in the local paper that was hard to deny.

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