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Big cat spotted in Lower Macungie likely just a feral cat; not mountain lion

LOWER MACUNGIE, Pa. (CBS) – Neighbors in Lower Macungie can finally feel a little safer letting their pets out of the house after reports that a mountain lion may have been roaming the area's streets. 

Officials with the Pennsylvania Game Commission announced Monday that the animal spotted near an apartment complex is likely a large feral cat. 

A neighbor took pictures of a feline walking in a field between Village Round and Hanover Drive on Sunday. Some worried this was a mountain lion. At the time, Pennsylvania State Police and the Pennsylvania Game Commission warned residents to keep pets and children indoors. 

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This is a cutout of a mountain lion compared to the photo submitted by neighborsPennsylvania Game Commission staff examined the area for scat and tracks prior to using life-size cutouts of a house cat, a bobcat, and a mountain lion, and then working with the reporting party to stage the photo again from the same location and the same camera perspective. PGC_fromReportingParty

But Monday afternoon, officials announced their tests on the paw prints and droppings left behind indicate this animal was likely a large feral cat. 

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