Do they exist in the British Isles?  Is this a big cat?  Or a dog?  What do we all think?  I'm not entirely sure it looks like a big cat tbh.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/8172064.stm

yeah im not to sure myself cat or dog who knows lol

I'm sure they do exist, several other videos and photos have been too convincing, but I'm not convinced by this one. The movements aren't fluid enough for a cat of any type, it walks like a dog.

Looks like a cat to me but who can say how big it is. The video is very shakey and maybe it's a large domestic moggy with a long fluffy coat?

It's brilliant having the railway tracks to give scale because that shows it's way, way bigger than the biggest domestic cat. The way it walks on the rail is very cat-like behaviour - dogs would prefer not to do that, and it just doesn't move like a dog, although I thought near the beginning of the footage that the tail carriage was quite doglike, but when it was walking away it lost that and became much more feline. This is the most convincing footage I've ever seen.

I do think there are some roaming around, not sure about that clip though, this is from our local paper just a few weeks ago

http://www.ayrshirepost.net/ayrshire-news/local-news-ayrshire/2009/07/24/puma-suspected-of-horse-attack-in-coylton-102545-24213620/

Thats not a cat its a dog the action is all wrong. Having looked after leopards, Jags, tigers, cheetas, snow leopards ect its not a big cat, they just dont walk so loosley there more slinky its too upright.

just saw this on the news and i thought the story was about a dog walking on railway tracks as i never heard the audio.

I used to live in Devon and know many people who have seen 'the beast'!  there were also several local farmers who lost livestock, investigations were carried out on remains which ruled out dog attacks.  speculation it is a puma, and they believe many big cats were released when they tightened the laws re. zoo licensing and the keeping of exotic animals

the story in the papers last year did make me laugh though when they discovered it was just a big black newfie!!

Lol! Yes I thought I had heard that a Newfie was to blame for several sightings.  I'd love to go on holiday to one of the places that big cats have been seen.  Just for noseyness sake :-)

starts off definitely not a cat but then gets more cat like. Odd! I have seen two BC in UK and one in germany, the latter being far more impressive as it was hunting rabbits on a hillside!

Wow! :-)

I'm with you Karen, I think it's a big fluffy domestic cat.  Big cats don't trot with quick little steps like that, they have a big smooth stride. It also doesn't look so big walking past those flowers by the side of the track.

I met a guy once on a forest path when walking my (brown) Newfie.  He stopped me and said that he was relieved to see she was a dog as, when he first spotted us from a distance, he would have sworn I was walking a lion!  So, who knows...maybe if he'd only seen us at a distance there would be rumours circulating about the woman who walks a lion in the local forest park? :D

What gauge is that railway line?   if it's narrow gauge then the animal might seem bigger than it is? :-D

It does give the width between the rails in the article but I can't remember what it was with out checking. I was surprised at the width though so yes this could easily be a much bigger cat than it might appear.

>What gauge is that railway line?

It's the West Highland line - 4' 8½" gauge. It says that in the article.

> width between the rails

4ft 8" it said in the paper. I thought Newfie at first but as it goes on to the track it looks less like a dog. The guy took it on his mobile so I guess that's why the quality is not too good.

We were out walking it was early morning but very, very clear. I saw something  cat like come out of the woods and cross the path in front of us about 100 yards ahead, it stopped looked in our direction then just slinked away into the woods on opposite side of the path. Just being daft? The dogs reaction made me wonder. They both came straight to my side and stood motionless. It was not a dog I am convinced of that! The boys stayed by my side for the rest of the walk.
I have since looked on the net and there are  reported sightings in that area.... So I am interested in any stories I may hear.

Before this event I also thought it was just silly stories...

The walking along the rail is such an un-doglike thing to do. Cats have no problems walking along the narrow surfaces such as the top of fence panels fence, for example, but dogs are rubbish at walking on narrow things and would much rather be on the flat, even if it's stony such as the ballast of a railway line.

Might be a big cat but don't think it's a big cat!!  I have seen dogs stalk and move like cats at times.  Don't see why it couldn't be a Lab are their tails all the same length, know my breeds aren't?

I've never seen a lab with a tail long enough to reach the ground, the way that animal's appears to be.

Remember that the guy filming it is a dog handler, so is used to seeing dogs.

my akita X GSD loves walking on narrow things. its her party trick.

I have watched it over and over, and the more I see, the less I see a Lab, the movement is all wrong.. and its more likely a lab would choose to patrol the perimiter/undergrowth than walk fluidly along the tracks.. I have seen labs move like this, but not for that length of time,

Not really saying that it was a Lab, but hey, the filming isn't very clear and in reality hard to figure out what it is.

I think just they couple first seconds show it as a cat.  It is after that you start questioning it. Glad the first few seconds are there so you see it coming out the bush and onto the line.

It could be a tad smaller though than protrayed.  

The movements aren't fluid enough for a cat of any type, it walks like a dog

I agree it does walk like a dog, the first shot looks like a cat but after that I would swear it to be a dog, however I can't say I've seen any big cats walking any further than a few feet in zoo's and wildlife parks so who knows, but I would expect them to move like our domestic cats though.

I do believe we have a few 'big' cats out there though, but hopefully not that big!

Its not slinky or low enough for a cat its more upright and jerky, first glance I would have plumped for a cat but the walking action is all wrong.
Just watched it agin the tail is held wrong as well, a cat on the prowl ( a big one) keeps its tail low so it cant be seen it even wags its tail low, the only time I have seen a cat shoot its tail high is when the male cats spray backwards over visiting tourists he he!

i love it when they do that!! also when male juvenile chimps urinate in their mouths and spit it at passerbys!!!!

A few years ago we were holidaying nr Langholm, Scotland in a beautiful forrested area. We came across some remarkable footprints, a lot broader than our GSD's and definitely cat like. My husband took some photo's, with my hand next to them as an indicator of the size and we sent them off to a "big cat research group".

For the rest of our walk, our GSD stayed close to us and kept air scenting and grumbling as she strared into the forest. To be on the safe side we eventually put her back on her lead and she relaxed back into her normal self. On our return, when we came to the same area, we had exactly the same air-scenting, but with no grumbling.

We had a reply and yes they were confirmed as cat prints, and there had been a number of reported sightings in the same area over the past couple of years. Unfortunately we never hear any more, and I still regret having sent off the original prints. Maybe one day I will troll through the photo sleeves and find the negatives.