A COUPLE visiting the vets have reported spotting a “very large black cat” they believe could have been a puma.

They said the animal, said to be nearly three feet high, dived into the bushes at around 4.30pm on Sunday (October 16).

The encounter occurred near Chester Gates Business Park.

Lee Morris reported the sighting to Puma Watch North Wales, a group set up to document and investigate such encounters.

He said: “Just left Chester Vets travelling through the car park when my partner saw what she saw to be a very large black cat that went into one of the bushes.

“It must have been about 30 inches high.”

The latest sighting added to Puma Watchs map.

The latest sighting added to Puma Watch's map.

The sighting has been added to the group's interactive map.

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Chester Gates is close to Costco Chester, where an HGV driver reported spotting a puma crossing the M56 in April last year.

At the time, he told Puma Watch: “I was joining the M56 Eastbound from the slip road off the A494 next to the VOSA checkpoint.

“I was driving my artic lorry and as I left the roundabout to join the slip road a large cat crossed the slip road left to right, from the back of Costco towards the wasteland in the centre of the motorway junction.

“The cat looked young, it was speckled brown in colour, about the height of a fox, slim-bodied but with very large legs and paws and a long bushy tail.”

Puma Watch founder Tony Jones said there have been several sightings in the area in recent years.

He said: "Previous sightings have also occurred in nearby Ellesmere Port, including at Ince Marshes and in Whitby Park.

"Earlier this month, an encounter with one of Chester’s big cats was reported by some dog walkers, who spotted what they believe could be a puma or a panther in Caldy Valley Nature Park between Huntington and Great Boughton."

Reporting that sighting, Robin Carter said: “We were walking our dog in the evening and the dog had stopped behind us.

“We heard some leaves rustling and saw a black big cat. It was too big to be a normal cat or dog. It was lying down behind the trees in an overgrown area just off the path.

“We stopped for around 30 seconds to see what it was and although it was dark, we used a torch which made it clear to see that it was a big cat like a puma or a panther.”

Tony added: "It’s not the first encounter in Caldy Valley Nature Park. Back in April 2021, a member of the public reported a frightening encounter with a ‘growling and snarling’ creature while walking their dog there.

Big cat seen in Chester. Image: Puma Watch.

"Big cat" seen in Chester. Image: Puma Watch.

Last month, a man reported seeing a "big cat" on the roof of Chester Market.

He told Puma Watch: “I was out drinking with the boys in the market in Chester. You have to go outside and into another old building to get to the toilets, and when I went around the corner where the toilets are, I spotted something moving on the roof opposite that made me look up from my phone.

“It was sniffing around behind the back of the wall so at first I thought it was a dog on the roof for some reason. It must have heard me because it lifted its head and looked down at me, then immediately turned and ran away.”