My mind is blown right now, I went to feed my Boer Goats this morning that have their own pen they stay in at night, never in the 16 years of raising goats have I had this problem, I found one dead and picked to the bone, this is way different then a coyote attack are any dog because they will hurt more then one goat, this just looks so different, really upset and making some calls to wild life people. But my question is has any body seen a kill from a big cat? All the large animals have been on edge for the last couple of days out here, my horses and of course my goats, just jumpy and watchy and now this happen. So if anybody has dealt with this please, I will send pictures and see what you guys think. I wont post pictures here because its so graphic, just sick over this and now so darn worried..

I'm so sorry this happened!! Hugs to you and hopefully the rest of your critters will be ok after this scary event! 

http://www.santacruzpumas.org/2014/03/lion-kills-vs-coyote-kills/

Yes, its an awful sight for sure and just heartbreaking.  My step dad (deceased) was a government trapper for 30+ years and I am still in contact with one of his friends who is still trapping.  If you want to send me pictures, I can ask him what he thinks.  One of my co-workers had what looked like a cat attack on her farm and the game wardens came out, but were never able to capture it or find out for sure what it was that killed her goats.

You can email them brandymartin17@yahoo.com

I'm no help but just want to say sorry about your goat! That's a terrible thing to deal with!

The site will be clean unlike coyotes or dogs. They will stay with the kill until it's picked clean. They will also set the gut pile to the side,it's usually left over. This time of year, you are probably looking at a family, if it is a mountain lion kill. I think your goat is too big for a bobcat to be the culprit. Pictures? 

Being in the mountains of Colorado, we have lots of mountain lions however, we rarely have any problems. Had one young colt come up with scatches down both haunches once that we know was a lion but other than that, no problems. Eagles cause us more issues than any cats. 

My SIL doesn't think it's a big cat. They eat choice organs and meat but do not eat hide nor the whole carcass. They typically break the neck or puncture the skull and drag  the body off. Often times they bury the carcass with leaves or dirt. That are known to drag an elk carcass over a mile. They don't usually eat at the kill site. 

Do you normally have cats? 

We don't even though we do the have them now and issues from time to time. Thier kills here are not text book like described above. We have way too many coyotes and they take the guts and pick anything left behind  clean by morning, they fallow the cat (usualy younger that got pushed up the river) and clean up after them. 

I look for broken necks, slashed shoulders and hips and tracks coming and or leaving the site. 

We were one of the first in our area to report a cat kill on livestock the game warden didn't belive us at first. 

Hello STPG. Do you live North, South, East or West of the City? My brother lives near Alternate 90 and Eden Rd (very near the Guadalupe river) and has seen mountain lion tracks in his cattle pasture. So sorry about your goat.

I have a friend who raises sheep.  What you describe is exactly how she describes what's left when coyotes kill her ewes.  Picked clean, nothing but bone. One not-as-hungry coyote dined on a large lamb and left it still standing.  She had to shoot it.

How awful! I'd be scared whatever it was is going to return for more. Other animals acting flighty is a sign there is something there that normally isnt. something they arent use  to dealing with or seeing. This may sound totally off the wall but what about wild hogs? Your goats totally closed in though right? Like a fenced pen that something would have to jump over to get to it? We had a nasty hog running around behind the field by our barn.. my horses weren't having it ... at all. Snorty and kicking the walls to get out. 

I didn't post a "text book" answer, my SIL has lived in the Rockie Mountains almost his whole life, so it was his experience. They live in a canyon among the mountains in Colorado. They lost their goat to a beat this year and have black bear, lions and elk on their property. Elk and bear frequently are seen in their back yard. 

Whats so strange is this dont look like a normal coyote kill, coyotes go for the hindend/butt and eat that all out and leave the front area pretty much alone, this goat was in a pen with 11 others all fenced in, her neck is broken and her butt/hindend it all in tack not one bite back there. I have had goats killed over the years by coyotes and dogs but this kill is just so way different looking. Would you guys mind if I did post a picture, so y'all can see what I'm talking about. I just hope and pray it was coyotes so I can at least have a peice of mind and not worry about my two mini's and horses and of course the other goats, I wanted the goats to live out the rest of their lives here but not get eaten. So let me know if y'all would be ok with a picture, I just dont want to gross out anybdy. 

we have lost steers to big cats - 600# weight... they usually like to take the shoulder .

 Do you not have lgd's to stay with your goats?

coyotes seem to go for the rear end.

send me a picture  vworrell@centurylink.net

post the picture won't bother me....

I'll send you a picture, and Thanks..

pictures sent, thank you..

We are on the South side between StockDale and Seguin, we saw a Mountain Lion about 1 mile from us one night coming home from town crossing the road about 9 that evening this was about 8 years ago. I have had ranchers tell me of sightings over the years.. I just pray this is coyotes that did this..

If I know for sure it was coyotes then I would not be so worried, but not knowing is really setting heavy on me. Game camera is going up tonight. 

I sure wouldn't mind seeing the photos either. I'm sure it's not anything worse than we have all seen before 

There has been some sightings in my area over the years. Just scary to think it could have been a cat. If I find out it was coyotes or even a bobcat then that would ease my mind. I guess I'll post a couple of pictures. One of the neighbors saw the goat this after noon and thinks it not coyotes. 

Thank you Whiteboy. 

Heres some pictures..

So the neck is broken? Looks like a bite mark on the neck in the 2nd photo? Or am I seeing things... 

Looks like something was holding her down by her neck, there is marks all over it but no broken or torn skin, I moved her neck around and you could hear crunching or grinding like broken bone, so pretty sure it was broken.. I have 3 older goats that stay out 24/7 for the last 3 years and nothing has ever bother them. One of them is so old and crippled and cant run, so I dont get why whatever it was wanted to get in the pen and make a kill. 

I'm not by any means,  an expert on wildlife, but I'm going to say this doesn't look like coyotes to me. I've seen plenty of calves and deer ripped up by coyotes and this just doesnt fit the typical coyote MO. but that doesn't mean it couldn't be either though.. maybe a larger pack moving thru. Broken neck screams cat to me. I could be totally wrong, it's been known to happen

The thing about cats is they don't often eat a bunch right away. We live an hour from the southern Black Hills and the hills are crawling with cats. We occasionally get one through and neighbors have lost colts, calves and sheep to them. They generally drag the carcass off and bury it under brush and leaves. They let it stew and soften and come back at night to eat.

Coyotes seem to hamstring most of the sheep they kill around here, but I suppose with a pair, one might go for the throat. Could it be dogs, they can sure nab by the neck, but most dogs kill for pleasure vs food?

I have had dogs kill for the fun of it years ago and they always went for the backend, they never went for the throat, and they would maul more then one, the last attack they mauled at least 6 adult does 2 died and had to shoot 3 and my one doe made it, but shes got a stiff back leg now and has the run of the place sense shes crippled now and a blind one runs with her and a adult child stays with the old doe, the one that was killed was in a pen with about 11 more. Thats why I'm so puzzled about only one getting kill and the others were not touched. But I did send another BB a few pictures and they said it was coyote's so I have my fingers cross that it was a coyote. Talked to a Game Warden today and she was telling my husband that a mountain lion was spotted a couple of roads over, no more then a mile from us not to long ago. So we have a game camera set up, the pood girls did not go back into their pen this evening so they are now hanging out in front of my hay barn, I left all the lights on so hopefully that will help if what ever it was does come back and wont go into the lights.

I'm no expert either, but this is just so different from what I have seen in the past. I just hope that it was coyotes or coyote. What ever did this it happen super early this morning. 

That seems to always be when coyotes attack ... early am. We lost several chickens when we accidentally left the coop open the hens decided to venture out right at dawn and I saw a coyote running off with one. Hate those buggers so much but yeah, I'd rather be having to deal with coyotes than a big cat, anyday. I hope your stock stays safe tonight and from now on. We set up a game camera on one of the deer feeders in the back pasture and got TONS of photos of coyotes. It's a wonder how my barn kitties last around here. Guess they are smarter than the yotes. They are black so maybe that helps them lol! My older momma cat started losing her vision in one eye so now shes an inside house cat.. fat and lazy but very content not playing "I survived " every night 

Try some Night Guard Solar lights. 

Big cat.

I have some pictures that look much like yours. We had three dogs get into our herd of nannies. Thankfully, one had it's collar on and we had the owner tell the SO that it was missing. The SO had the owner come claim the dog at our place. He couldn't believe the death all around him. He claimed two of the dead dogs. His home owners kicked in and we were able to get a little cash to recover some of the loss. I tell you this in case you have dogs come calling. 

We live in infested hills. 3 types of cats, coyotes that fill the night with song, and now black bears are coming into the area. Our big problem-birds of prey. They can do the damage to newborns and they are relentless. I purchased a special gun that shoots bangers and screamers high up. Got some real hope this helps us. 

Hope you catch something on the cam. We get alerted quite a bit by our pictures when a big cat is in the area. We bring the goats and if we have foals into a big paddock with the lights for a time. 

My father in law lost over 40 head, nearly all his yearling ewes last year to the neighbor's dogs. 2 nights back to back. 1 was a border collie and the other is a mini aussie. Most had there throats ripped out. It was after a new snow and he was able to follow both dog tracks to the neighbor's yard about 5 miles away. 

It is strange for even a coyote to sit and gorge on one like that. Unless perhaps she has a den? Is it  too early for that? Our experience with sheep kills is they also kill or wound several and eat only the hind end and waste the rest.

But I really don't think cat??? Sorry this happened.

This might have been said already, but have you shown these pictures to the DNR?  Maybe they might have wildlife experts to help you...............

a shoulder and middle - it appears to be a cat kill - that is not coyotes.   

I'm so sorry.

one year we had one that killed a 600 weight steer (shoulder gone) and I found a beautiful doe of mine with her gut ate out....

go to   http://www.santacruzpumas.org/2014/03/lion-kills-vs-coyote-kills/ coyote vs cat kill - I tried to copy but this is pretty accurate.  cats  eat the internal organs first...  coyotes ususally start at the back end...  or google this to bring it up.

Deffinitely looks like a big cat to me. We have them take animals down around here sometimes. I'm not an expert, but in my experience, they look very similar to yours. Necks are usually snapped, sometimes theres marks, and sometimes not. They take a couple of days to eat the whole animal generally, but they always come back to finish. We left a half eaten calf out once, and the next day it was completely gone. We watched the cat eat it the whole day and drag just the hind end back in the woods. They don't leave anything behind. Like someone else has said though, they are slow eaters. Be careful! So sorry you are dealing with this.

Thank you for the help, I just dont know what to think anymore, I'm just on edge over all this. Could not get anybody out here to see for them selfs and I had a state trapper tell us its coyotes without even seeing the pictures, oh well got rid of the body last night.. The Game Wardens were not even interested, oh well.. Even when we had poachers it was like pulling teeth to get someone out here.

Have the other animals calmed down? Hopefully it was just moving thru and gone, whatever it was...I couldn't imagine how stressful that would be 

They do seem a bit more at ease, but the goats still wont go near their pen, but watching the Nanny's/Does they are still really watchy they keep looking over at that area and those poor girls just wont go over there, going to put up more wire panels and try to get them to go in but I'm really nervous about it to, they are still all sleeping in front of the hay barn and still leaving on lights, I'm always listening now for any noise they might make if being attacked, but like you I hope that what ever it was has moved on. Just nervous for my animals, really worried about my two mini's, they stay in with the big guys so maybe it will get back to normal in a few days/weeks, who knows

Havent seen anything attacked. But Lance has caught some pretty big cats on his camera. And not the one right dawn by the creek, but the one up the hill closer to the barn.

@ STPG: If you Google the following words you will see info. you should find interesting. The post is dated 9-28-18.

Mountain lion between Seguin & Stockdsle

Yikes, Roxie ...... just seeing this ..... what a tragedy! Hopefully, whatever it was, it was just passing through! 

When I went out to feed I was just stunned, I could not believe what I was seeing, and with the way is killed was the first thing I noticed, it was not taking down by the hind end it was by the neck and the way it was eating is what scares me. I have been threw kills but never looked like this and there was more then one dead or mauled not just one when it happen. We have a ton of coyotes that come threw or hang out looking for meals, have them on my game camera we have in the back yard, but they have never bother my goats while in their pen the past 16 years. Its been quite, so hopefully this wont happen again. 

We have called and talked to two Game warden's and one state trapper, but no one would come out they just looked at the pictures, the Trapper saids we dont have big Cats out here, wrong I have seen one crossing the road late one night and have others tell me they have seen one come threw their land. There has been sightings. The only way you can prove it is catch one on a game camera, or shoot it. So now I have game cameras set up in 5 different places, lol.

So sorry Miss Roxie.  Prayers that whatever it was is gone and doesn't come back

I live in SE KS and all the game wardens deny that any cats are around.  They do chip some of them... For awhile, the game warden kept driving by our place - so what does that tell you.  My husband told them if they were threatening our livestock, we would shoot him.

It is well known that they are, people have sightings of them.  

Do you have livestock guardain dogs... ???   They will at least keep away the coyotes.... and you need more than one dog

Coyotes leave carcasses like that. Had it happen to my goats. Pulled into the driveway at 3 in the morning and saw them run off. Came back the next night and killed 3 more. Slept in the pasture for 2 weeks till I got a LGD. No more problems. Coyotes will run along beside the, grab them by the neck and put on the brakes and suffocate them. Had 1 survive the attack somehow.. She had bites around her neck.