What's Killing The Chickens In Wisconsin?

[Original headline: Mountain lion on loose in northwoods?]

Stettin, Wis. (AP) -- Farmers say a mountain lion lurking in the woods is killing their chickens and striking fear in their hearts, but authorities say they' ve heard this story before.

" We get those sightings every year, " said Marathon County Sheriff' s Lt. John Fischer. " But no one ever gets a picture. There' s a lot of things that kill chickens."

Paula Brabec, who lives on a hobby farm about three miles from Wausau, said the creature killed seven of her 14 chickens May 22.

Residents in the area first saw a caramel-colored, long-tailed creature emerge from the woods last week.

Fischer said the state Department of Natural Resources has investigated sightings of mountain lions in the area before. The DNR has asked residents to take photographs of the creatures, but he said nobody has ever caught one on film.

" They' re not in this area, " Fischer said. " It could be a bobcat or a raccoon. Owls will swoop in coops."

Brabec said something knocked down a chicken coop window screen more than 5 feet off the ground on her farm Sunday night.

" At 5 and a half feet off the ground, that' s not a raccoon, " Brabec said.

She said her neighbors have seen the creature four times in the last week. Someone should issue warnings to joggers and horse riders in the area, she said.

" I' m concerned, " Brabec said. " I have four children. They like to play in the woods. I have to go out and do barn chores twice a day."

Brabec said DNR officials told her mountain lions don' t live within 100 miles of Stettin. She said they found several paw prints on her property but couldn' t determine what made them.

Bob Manwell, a DNR spokesman, said the agency had not found any conclusive evidence that there were any mountain lions in the area.

• Story originally published by •
Minneapolis-St.Paul Star-Tribune / MN - May 29 2001