The Southern Reporter of 18 July 2002 said an unidentified large black animal was being blamed for the disappearance of family cats in Galashiels. The former Borders Health Board chief executive Bill Anderson had seen it prowling on Gala Hill. He said it looked like a black Alsatian with a white blaze, but not with the same build, and had pricked up ears. It ran off about eighty yards, stopped, looked back and then made for the edge of a wood.
At least five cats had gone missing over about six weeks, two within forty eight hours, with no trace found. Strange paw prints were seen nearby. The paper said an unusual black fox was one theory, though experts said it would be highly unusual for a fox to attack a cat, and a large feral cat was another. A later Southern Reporter piece said print casts from Gala Hill showed a large cat had been roaming there. Letters to the paper blamed foxes and Kellas cats. No animal was caught.
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