The search for the puma-like cat in Co Monaghan has been called off but gardaí will continue to monitor the situation. Conor Lally reports.
Soldiers from Monaghan barracks and the Garda Air Support Unit, who assisted in the search, remain on standby in the event of fresh sightings of the animal.
Insp Pat McMorrow, of Monaghan town Garda Station, said an army marksman would also remain on call. "We're confident we'd have the whole search party back in action within 30 minutes to an hour of any new sighting."
He said gardaí had still not determined if the animal seen around the town in the last fortnight was a domestic cat or a bigger puma-type animal.
"We've seen video footage and photographs and were are satisfied that all of them, apart from a video shown on RTÉ on Monday, is a domestic cat".
The video shot on Monday near the Tully housing estate, on the northern outskirts of the town, showed an animal with the the appearance of a much heavier build than a domestic cat, Insp McMorrow said. However, the footage was taken so far from the animal, it was of insufficient quality to make a conclusive judgement.
A full scale search involving gardaí, the Army, and a Garda helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft was begun when the animal was spotted on Monday. Gardaí and many locals believe the animal was responsible for killing a number of farm animals.