MONROE - Joyce Foley believes the animal she saw near her house at about 8:30 Tuesday night was a cougar.
Foley, who lives on Skinner Hollow Road, said she was watching television Tuesday when she heard suspicious noises outside her window.
She's used to hearing animal sounds.
"There's lots of woods around the house," she said. "I hear animal sounds all the time."
The sound she heard Tuesday was different. It was unusual and she turned the sound down on her TV. She went to the window and used a flashlight to look outside.
What she saw was a big cat, which could only have been a cougar, she said.
"I know people don't want to say they saw something because other people might make fun of them, but when it (the cat) turned I could see it was a cougar," she said.
It had a long body and a long tail, she said.
The cougar wasn't bothered by the light. It left soon afterward. Foley said she looked for tracks Wednesday but couldn't find any.
She wasn't able to get a picture of it, but wishes she had. A picture would prove there was a cougar in her yard.
It wouldn't be the first time she's seen a cougar in the area, Foley said. She said she's seen cougars in the area two or three other times.
She saw a cougar several years ago when she first moved there.
"It was on the other side of the fence," she said.
She's heard what she described as a "scream" from what she thought was a cougar on the bluff near her house.
"It sounded like it was calling for another cougar," she said.
Tuesday's sound reminded her of the sound a cougar would make if it was calling for its kittens. She didn't see any kittens Tuesday.
There are lots of deer near her house and she said it would make sense that a wild cougar would come to the area to search for food.
The possibility that a cougar is in the area doesn't worry her.
"They're more scared of us than we are of them," she said.
Still, it's important to exercise some caution. Foley said she always goes outside with her dog and she's warned neighbors with small children to be careful if their children are outside alone.
According to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, cougars have been spotted in Wisconsin this year.
In March, a cougar was seen near Spooner. The DNR treed the animal March 4 but weren't able to capture the cat.
In 2008, a cougar was spotted near Milton. The cougar eventually was found and killed in Illinois.
The DNR says on its Web site, dnr.wi.gov, wild cougars disappeared from Wisconsin by 1910, but cougar sightings began to surface in the 1940s.
Anyone who believes they've seen a cougar is encouraged to contact the local DNR conservation warden at (608) 935-3368 or (608) 527-2335. People also can contact the Green County Sheriff's Department at 328-9400 or the Lafayette County Sheriff's Department at (608) 776-4870.
Foley, who lives on Skinner Hollow Road, said she was watching television Tuesday when she heard suspicious noises outside her window.
She's used to hearing animal sounds.
"There's lots of woods around the house," she said. "I hear animal sounds all the time."
The sound she heard Tuesday was different. It was unusual and she turned the sound down on her TV. She went to the window and used a flashlight to look outside.
What she saw was a big cat, which could only have been a cougar, she said.
"I know people don't want to say they saw something because other people might make fun of them, but when it (the cat) turned I could see it was a cougar," she said.
It had a long body and a long tail, she said.
The cougar wasn't bothered by the light. It left soon afterward. Foley said she looked for tracks Wednesday but couldn't find any.
She wasn't able to get a picture of it, but wishes she had. A picture would prove there was a cougar in her yard.
It wouldn't be the first time she's seen a cougar in the area, Foley said. She said she's seen cougars in the area two or three other times.
She saw a cougar several years ago when she first moved there.
"It was on the other side of the fence," she said.
She's heard what she described as a "scream" from what she thought was a cougar on the bluff near her house.
"It sounded like it was calling for another cougar," she said.
Tuesday's sound reminded her of the sound a cougar would make if it was calling for its kittens. She didn't see any kittens Tuesday.
There are lots of deer near her house and she said it would make sense that a wild cougar would come to the area to search for food.
The possibility that a cougar is in the area doesn't worry her.
"They're more scared of us than we are of them," she said.
Still, it's important to exercise some caution. Foley said she always goes outside with her dog and she's warned neighbors with small children to be careful if their children are outside alone.
According to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, cougars have been spotted in Wisconsin this year.
In March, a cougar was seen near Spooner. The DNR treed the animal March 4 but weren't able to capture the cat.
In 2008, a cougar was spotted near Milton. The cougar eventually was found and killed in Illinois.
The DNR says on its Web site, dnr.wi.gov, wild cougars disappeared from Wisconsin by 1910, but cougar sightings began to surface in the 1940s.
Anyone who believes they've seen a cougar is encouraged to contact the local DNR conservation warden at (608) 935-3368 or (608) 527-2335. People also can contact the Green County Sheriff's Department at 328-9400 or the Lafayette County Sheriff's Department at (608) 776-4870.