The sighting of a large “cat-like” beast in west Watford has left one dog owner fearing for the safety of her pet.

Anne Crisp and her husband were sleeping early one morning when they were woken by a “loud growling” sound in Stripling Way.

She thought it sounded starkly different from the familiar sound of foxes fighting in the night, which drew her husband to investigate further.

“My husband took a look out the window and saw a huge animal running up the road toward the land behind our housing estate. He is in no doubt in what he saw, he had not been drinking,” she said.  

“As a dog owner who takes long walks around the green belt and along the waterways, this is very concerning.”

She added that a cat had been mauled to death recently in the vicinity of Ebury Way, an attack which she said had been attributed to a stray dog.

However she suggested the animal was in fact killed by the mystery creature.

Have you spotted something similar in the area? If so, please get in touch at editor@watfordobserver.co.uk