When someone shows me a photo, or the cat, then I'll believe it. All our reports are from people looking out their back windows. I don't know of any hunters who have seen them and to me that means something with all the time they spend in the woods.

Check out this link for a picture of a caracal. If you saw this in your backyard, what would you think it is? These weigh in at about 40lbs.

http://www.cites.org/gallery/species/mammal/caracal.html

This is the type of animal I caught in Southbury about 9 years ago. It was a pet that had been declawed. They grow to about 40lbs and other than the ear tufts they look like a mountain lion from the side. A lot of people have them around the country. They are legal in other states, not so here in CT. Still, some people in CT have them as pets. When they get too big or nasty, some people just open the door and "let the cat out".