Tiger report causes stir in Puyallup

PUYALLUP, Wash. – A search for a tiger reportedly on the loose in east Pierce County stirred up nothing but a lot of traffic.

The reported sighting in a rural area near the city of Puyallup may have been a bobcat, or possibly a tiger kept as an illegal pet, Pierce County sheriff’s spokesman Ed Troyer said.

Either way, animal control and sheriff’s officers left the scene empty-handed after searching for about two hours late Thursday afternoon.

Cars full of people hoping for a tiger sighting cruised the area.

“I saw a cat,” Travis Johnson said. “I’m afraid for my chickens and goats – 200-pound cat, a big boy. I asked around. I guess a lot of people have seen it.”

Johnson said he saw the animal on his neighbor’s property and called 911. He described it as blond with black stripes. Definitely not a coyote, he said.

“I am not seeing things,” he added.