A LARGE black cat has been sighted in Winster just days after reports were made of a mysterious feline in the Furness peninsula.

Kathleen Fisher, of Clitheroe, was making a cup of tea on Boxing Day at her daughter's home at Lindeth Farm, Winster, when she spotted a large black cat prowling in her neighbour's garden.

"It was 8.50 am and I looked out of the kitchen window and I thought, my goodness me, this is the biggest cat I have ever seen in my life. I was so startled; it was about 50 yards away and it had the face of a cat with very bushy black hair and a bushy tail, with white fur around its neck and the top of its tail but it was as big as a Labrador."

Mrs Fisher said she watched the animal for about five minutes before it disappeared into the distance:

"I had never heard about the black cat sightings because I'm not from the area. I definitely didn't imagine it.

"I mentioned it to my son-in-law, Richard Barr, and he told me about the black cat people had seen."

Mr Barr said he had mentioned the sighting to some neighbours who said they had been walking their dogs in Winster a few days earlier when they spotted what they thought was one of the animals.

They realised their dogs were by their side and the strange black creature slinked off into nearby woods.

Sightings of a large, black cat-like creature have recently been made in Flookburgh, Kirkby Stephen in October, and Natland in August.

January 3, 2003 10:00