Brit Brief reports that Kelvin Diffey saw an enormous panther-like animal beside the River Stour at Longham on an evening walk. He thought at first it was a dog, but said that on getting closer it definitely was not. It watched him for several minutes before going into woodland. The article places this in August 2026.
The same article says a 2021 freedom of information request revealed eight reported sightings in 2018 to 2020 across Poole, Dorchester, Weymouth and Sturminster Newton, mentions an alleged big cat in a tree at Poole and reports from Wareham Forest, and quotes Jonathan McGowan, a Southbourne-based naturalist, who argues the high deer population could support large cats. Tess of the Vale adds livestock deaths and pumas at Gerrard's Hill near Beaminster, with no dates.
Police and wildlife groups treat these reports cautiously, as large domestic cats, deer and dogs are easily misjudged at distance or in poor light, and no animal has been confirmed in the county. The record is an area summary, so the pin is on Longham as one dated example and is approximate.
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