A PANTHER-like creature has been seen prowling next to a popular walking route in Galashiels.

Terrified dog-walker Sarah-Kaye Hook startled the large, black feline on Saturday afternoon at Gala Policies.

And the 34-year-old retail manager is convinced she encountered a wild cat.

Sarah-Kaye told the Border Telegraph: "I got the shock of my life.

"I was out walking the dog in the woods as I do daily and decided to take her up Gala Hill to explore when I caught a glimpse of this very large, long black beast flash past.

"It was astonishing and worrying that an animal like that will hunt so freely in an area that is frequented by dog walkers, cyclists and walkers.

“It was much bigger than my Labrador and had a long tail - there’s no way it was a dog. This was a large, black cat.

“It was the agility and speed that got me. I was frozen to the spot. I’ve thought of nothing else since I saw it and decided I should let people know. This could be dangerous.” Sarah-Kaye walks her dog Tipsy around the Policies almost daily and regularly ventures up onto Gala Hill.

But this is the first time she has ever spotted anything unusual.

She added: “It is not the type of thing you expect when out for a walk.

“I’m maybe being silly but I haven’t gone back up there since I saw it but it is worrying that an animal like that will hunt so freely in an area that is frequented by dog walkers, cyclists and walkers.” Sarah-Kaye made her sighting next to the gate which leads from the back of the Policies onto Gala Hill.

Over the past 20 years there have been regular reports of big cats in and around the Galashiels area.

A decade ago there were fears that several domestic cats which had gone missing from the town were the prey of a puma-like creature.

And there have been more recent sightings around Clovenfords and the Yair Forest.

Local councillor Gavin Logan saw a panther-like cat back in 2009 while walking his dog by Caddonfoot Hall.

He told us at the time: “It was within 15 metres of me across the river walking at the edge of Yair Forest. I’ve absolutely no doubt in my mind that is was a big cat - I was looking at it for all of 30 seconds.

“It was as big as a large dog but longer and looked pretty healthy from what I could tell.” Innerleithen driving instructor Ian Cross also reported a big cat sighting near his home the same year.

And dog walker Linda Connor observed a large black cat at the Bridgelands outside Selkirk in 2008.

There have also been sightings of large back and brown cats near Ancrum, Melrose and St Boswells in recent years.