Kent Cat Mystery Solved
Posted by: Loren Coleman on October 25th, 2008
The results of a followup investigation on the photograph of this apparent unknown cat taken earlier in 2008, at a golf course at Snodland, a small town in the county of Kent, England, have been filed. A new photograph (at the bottom) nails it.
Big Cats in Britain (BCIB) founder-researcher Mark Fraser sends along the solution to the Mystery Cat from Kent photograph:
Hi Loren, unfortunately the Kent cat on the golf course turned out to be a Burmese.
A local BCIB chap visited the area and reported:
I have been to the golf course today and had a good look around, I have attached some photos I took. When I went in to the golf house to ask permission too look around take pics I explained what I was doing. He seemed interested until I showed him the photograph. He said “I know this cat, he comes here often. He looks big in this photo but I can assure you he is only small, he lives in one of those houses over there.”
He was very helpful and pointed me to the exact place the photo was taken. I took the photos I needed then spent nearly two hours walking the course talking to the golfers showing the photo and discussing what they think. About half said that looks big should I be worried? A few said its hard to make out and even less said I have seen that cat about here before, its a Siamese or cross something but its only small.
I feel the photo sent to us was enlarged, defiantly cropped judging by what I have seen today. It must have been taken by laying or crouching on the ground. I spoke to the witness and feel he genuinely thinks he saw something unusual so he may not have meant to make the cat look bigger than it is. I will let every one make there own minds up and any feed back is more than welcome but I know what I think the cat is.
About Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading living cryptozoologist. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct).
Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013. He returned as an infrequent contributor beginning Halloween week of 2015.
Coleman is the founder in 2003, and current director of the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine.
Great job!!
figured as much. My mother-in-law has a Burmese that comes a courtin’. You can hear him from a mile away. to those who know nothing about cats here’s how to recognize a Burmese: Most everyone saw ” the lady and the tramp”. The 2 cats that the aunt brings over are Siamese. A Burmese looks like a Siamese, but almost with a calico look (usually minus the white). The main difference are the mannerisms. Siamese cats are usually very selfish (hence the song from the lady and the tramp). Burmese usually are a little selfish, but all they want is love. They can never get enough pets and love.
Interesting! When I gave a link to the cat experts on Catster, 4 out of 5 said Burmese.
Perhaps more of these mystery photos should be run by the domestic cat folks, especially if the scale is so misleading, as they often are. In England, it is considered absolutely necessary to allow your house cat, however beloved, to run loose, so there are a lot of them running around over there.
As a photographer I know how easy it is to crop a picture and make it look completely different. In this case, cropping made the cat look huge and mainly because we had only the trees in the background for a familiar reference. We assumed the trees were bigger than they actually were.
In any case, this has been a good lesson in perspective. We should always be very careful about jumping to any conclusions when faced with any photo.
As with so many things, it becomes a matter of perspective and point of view. Thanks for the update, Loren.
Shows to me that this group is getting good at separating the wheat from the chaff.
Thank you and credit to the “local BCIB” – no name?
The BCIB is identified five lines above where I used it for the second time in this posting. 🙂
Loren – Thanks for the clarification.
Great work Mark!
It was actually Rik Snook in the photograph that tramped the wet golf course, too far away from me in Scotland.
The picture was given to the domestic cat people, among others, no one could agree, hence the reason it was posted to Loren.
A Burmese.
I laughed.
Because from first glance, I sure had kitty.
I knew it had to be a Burmese or a Siamese mix. I, however, must disagree with a statement made by shumway10973: Siamese cats aren’t selfish. They are among the most attentive and loving of cats. At least, all of mine have been. I’ve had my current Siamese, Duke, for 13 1/2 years and he is the most wonderful of cats. He’s always there for any of the family, especially when someone is ill. He wants nothing more than to curl up beside us and purr.
That Disney movie is slander, I say 😉 .
Excellent investigative work! Glad that this one has been resolved.