Published: Friday, 16th January, 2009 12:45pm

Big cat terrorises Tweeddale

BIG cat experts are probing a string of sheep attacks in the Tweed Valley.

And photographs taken this week would suggest that the carnage isn"t over.

A number of flock attacks around Peebles and Innerleithen have been reported in recent weeks - with the finger of blame being pointed at dogs.

But a carcass discovered near Glentress on Monday and photographs of large prints in the snow only a couple of miles away have led to claims a large cat could be on the loose.

Scottish Big Cats have received 60 reports of sightings in and around the Tweed Valley over the past four years.

And they are currently examining this latest evidence. Mark Fraser from Scottish Big Cats told the Peeblesshire News: 'I certainly would not dismiss a big cat - with the history of sightings in the area, it seems evident that there is a large feline loose, and they have to eat.

'The print is inconclusive and will need more research and we would need to actually examine the carcass to give a definite yes or no.'

Over the past decade Peeblesshire has become one of several hot spots for big cats in Scotland, with sightings being made from above Clovenfords all the way up to Tweedsmuir.

Monday"s dead sheep was discovered by a jogger on his way to Glentress Forest.

And he claims it was stripped to the bone overnight.

The runner, who we agreed not to name, told us: 'I run past the field near the hotel every day and would have noticed if the dead sheep was there the day before.

'It had been stripped to the bone in the space of a night and you can"t blame a dog for that.

'I can"t imagine an animal the size of a sheep being completely

eaten in the space of what amounts to less than half a day next to a main road without anyone noticing.

'This is the third strange sheep death in three weeks that I know of.'

The jogger returned to photograph the carcass.

And he also produced the paw print images after finding them on another run near Cardrona towards the end of last year.

He added: 'My own images of prints in the forest do not, to my knowledge, conform to any European land animal that I know of.

'I think the prints are too big to even be a big cat but they do have claw indents. It"s all a bit strange.'

Lothian and Borders Police are still probing an incident near Traquair on January 4, where two sheep were destroyed following attacks.