In North Jersey back in the late 70's I saw one run directly in front of my vehicle at night and assumed it was a fox. Never forgot the thing; looked like a small wolverine.

Fast forward to the beginning of this week. My friend (just outside of Boston) calls up and during the conversation tells me his pit got hold of a fox in his backyard. He said he had never seen any fox that looked like this before. This thread got me thinking so I told him to google a fisher cat and go check out the carcass. One of his neighbors (an older man who used to trap) ID's it and tells him it's definitely a fisher cat. The pit had a few scratches on him. He may have surprised the little rat and simply ended up giving it a quick decapitation, or the weasel thought he had an easy meal (the pit is only 35 lbs). Talk about making a poor food choice.

I saw something I have never seen before in my life. We have groundhogs that live in the woods behind our home, but this was very different. I watched it travel between my home and my neighbors, then cross the street, it went behind that house and across several backyards down the street and up into the woods it went. I have to say I was a little frightened by it's size and speed. Didn't think to grab my camera but will next time.

These things are becoming out of control. Back at my home in North Andover (have my own condo in Haverhill now) there were 3 cats killed in the past 2 weeks in my neighborhood by fisher cats. Last night my neighbors woke up to 2 of them snarling/growling at my cat at the edge of the property. They called my dad right away around 6 am and he came straight home. My brother had already left for school so him and my mom looked everywhere for him and finally after hours he was sleeping in the basement... turned out my brother had let him in when he woke up.

Somehow my cat was fine, not a scratch on him. I guess he scared them off (I kid you not, he's bigger than most fisher cats.) I've watched him scare off a racoon before...

MY NEIGHBOR HERE IN CHARLTON IS FAMILIAR WITH FISHER CATS. HE WAS OUT ON THE ICE THE WINTER OF '06 AND HAD HIS DOG AND SMALL CHILD WITH HIM. OUT CAME A FISHER CAT!! HE RAN AFTER IT TO SCARE IT OFF. I HAD NEVER HEARD OR SEEN ONE IN MY ENTIRE 30 YEARS. THANK GOD!

Fisher cats have spread through north central MA as well. One was spotted on the prowl in Hubbardston (south of Gardner) on Sunday. Someone's beloved pet surely didn't come home that night.

Are these things that vicious and unstoppable? I got the official story from my neighbor about my cat and two fisher cats. They woke up right before dawn to the hissing/screams of two fisher's chasing my cat. My cat was in their yard I guess and they looked out the window and saw him dart into my yard. The Fisher's at first chased but once my cat crossed the street they didn't follow. My cat found a good hiding spot i guess because he was safe and sound in the morning.

If it came to it though, if it was only one fisher vs. my cat would he have a chance? He's a big, strong, tough cat. He's 21 lbs (not any fat either) 10 years old and has a pretty mean set of teeth. I've seen him eat a chipmunk whole before... Only thing that worries me is that he doesn't have his front claws.

I saw a fisher cat in my yard this morning in CT. I looked up information on the internet and your cat wouldn't have a chance. They eat pets, cats, squirrels, mice etc.

A fisher cat devoured my dog. It was a small dog, and by the look of what was left, it fought bravely, but it lost none the less.

They cry and scream almost like human children and can climb up and down trees forwards and backwards. It is extremely disturbing.

Please see my post from Apr 26 2007, 05:07 PM on this thread and keep your animals indoors if you value their lives. Wolves are making a comeback out west and coyotes are a problem even in urban Los Angeles. Grizzly bears used to inhabit San Diego county. Their return could cause serious problems were that to happen, they were bigger than most Kodiak grizzlies and could eat anything they chose!

A fisher cat attacked my house cat last night. The cat got away - safe and sound and will be locked in from now on - every night. But the fisher cat came right into our yard and was running back and forth in circles - big, fast and scary! Leicester Mass.

I saw a fisher cat in my backyard, seekonk, ma on friday, may 11th. Didn't know what it was. Thought it was an escaped ferret, mink. I have since determined it was a fisher cat. It was about 4 feet long (with the tail) and it climbed up and down a tree in my yard. Walked across the lawn and the street into a neighbor's yard. talked to other folks and they have been spotted in the past few weeks around here.

Has anybody attempted to make friends with one?
-C2.

Acton, Ma
05/20/07
out walking my dog along the road and came across a mother fisher cat and 4/5 kits crossing.
mother very cautious and kept back but one kit charged us, screaming and making a lot of noise.
not something I wish to encounter again!

I live in Auburn, MA and my neighbor spotted a fisher cat digging into my shed and also saw it in the tree (birds squawking like crazy). I haven't seen or heard it myself, but will be escorting my small dogs!!! Is there anything that will deter them?

Elinor Posted on Yesterday at 7:55 PM

Besides carrying a firearm or chemical repellent, I suggest getting yourself a small purebred American Pit Bull Terrier. They're a dime a dozen at your local city animal shelter. I previously posted about a fisher who had the unfortunate encounter with my friend's pit. Believe me:

"There is no substitute"

I was using a Hav-A Hart trap in my backyard in Raynham, MA for nuisance squirrels. This AM found a mink-like animal with a long, bushy tail in it. He/she looked at me with the same degree of curiosity that I had. I snapped a couple of photos and opened the door and let him/her go. Web photos left no doubt that it was a Fisher. Neat!

Burrillville RI--
OMG i saw a fisher for the first time!!! It ran in front of my car i had no idea what it was until i looked it up online.. soooo cute!!

I live in Kingston NY ,my next doors neighbor told me her small cat was attacked by a Fisher behind her house last week.. we live in the city and do not have woods nearby. I have a building lot ,problem is the grass is grown higher than usual I usually keep the grass mowed like a reg lawn....is it safe to have someone mow it or use a weed wacker while this animal is in the area.. Does it burrow underground or make nests on the ground or and Will it attack a human?

I saw one on the 8th hole at Hampden Country Club.

I live in Salem, NH and i saw one last night. I live in a heavily wooded dead end road. I had my 23 pound puggle on the dog run at about 7pm. I heard him barking and came out. I thought it was a woodchuck from at first. I crept up to get a better look. It looked like a large weasil and it was making eyes at my dog. He was about to attack before i chased him away. Be Careful!

A Fisher was spotted in Westbrook, CT on May 29 carrying a mouse in its mouth.
I was surprised to see it during the daylight hours and in a populated neighborhood area.

They have their benefits in keeping down the vermin rodent population, but watch out for your cats and small dogs, they eat those as well!

I live in Littleton, MA and we heard our first Fisher Cat last night. Its nothing that I have ever heard before- it sounds like a woman screaming from the woods- it was an awful sound. I have a small 5 pound dog and I will make sure I don't let her out at all with out her leash on. I had no idea fisher cats were in our area.

Where in Westbrook was the fisher spotted? I live on Sagamore Terrace, Westbrook, and spotted a dark, weasel type animal (fisher?) on May 31, @ 1pm, running across the yards.

I live in Sandown, NH and we have fisher cats in our area. My indoor cat got out last week, we found him, but he was attacked by some animal. Our vet said that it looked like a fisher cat because he was repeatedly bitten in the neck area, which is common for them to do. He also had a strange & pungent odor to the attacked area. Unfortunately, our cat did not survive after fighting for two days. We have had several cats disappear from our neighborhood alone and one neighbor tried to break up an attack and the fisher cat started towards him. We've also heard them at night on several occasions, which sound pretty scary in the dead of night. Not a huge "fan" of this animal.

I have pictures of a skeleton that we found in Hampden, MA and am wondering if someone can tell me if it is a fisher cat.

roccoc@charter.net

a friend of mine saw a fisher cat in RHODE ISLAND ,she had never heard of of fisher cat before , neither have i , but when she told her son about it he told her it sounds like a fisher cat so he went on line & sure enough when she saw the picture of it , she was possitive thats was it was. have they ever attact people ,small childen ? they are very ugly ,but also must serve a purpess in nature .

I live in Southborough, MA and a fisher cat just walked across my backyard --- about 15 feet from my house. At first I thought it was my neighbors cat, but then I looked closer and realized what it really was! It's very scary looking.

Hey guys.

I live in Haverhill, MA. Very close to Pelham NH. We have had a fisher cat roaming around our neighborhood for about a month now. First saw it trailing the neighborhood outdoor cat Toby one night at dusk. Fortunately it did not attack the cat. I know it's a Fisher for I did some research over the net immediately while the image was fresh in my mind.

A lot of my neighbors also have heard its night-time cry which I finally got to hear myself last night for the first time. Believe me, it's one real creepy noise. Sounds like a combination of a high-pitched woman screaming and the audio from that scene from the movie " The Grudge " in which that little boy/cat thing is screaming.

It's having a fun time preying around here. I've only smelled the familiar odor of a skunk only once this Spring/Summer. I've lived here for about 4 years now and skunk odor was something that I would have smelled at least a dozen times by this time in the past.

I've also noticed a shortage of rabbits and even squirrels in my yard this year as well. This animal is actually starting to annoy me.

Mike P.

I live in Swansea, MA and these vicious animals have been such a nuisance in our town. A friend of mine had 14 chickens killed over the past week. She woke up one morning to find 13 carcasses lying in her chicken coop. The chicken wire had been chewed through. The next night she locked up the remaining two roosters in wooden pens. At 5 am they were both still alive and in their pens. When she returned outside at 7 am one of the doors had been broken into and found another dead body. She went to pick up the body at 730 am and it was gone. Last night she boarded up the last remaining rooster. This morning when she went out to check on it, he was safe but all of the boarding had deep claw marks in it. Another neighbor informed her that his chickens had all been killed also. He actually witnessed a fisher cat pulling one of his chickens by the head through the fencing. These animals are dangerous. Anyone living in this area or any area where these fisher cats are need to be extremely careful for their pets and themselves. These animals are blood suckers.

This past week my daughter's cat was nearly killed by a fisher cat in the daytime. Just a warning that if you love your pets to keep them in.

[FONT=Optima
this winter, i watches in my yard what i thought was ferret. it lived under a rock by my brook. last night 6/25, my friends cat in Granville, ma was attacked by a fisher. they are attacking dogs and cats in our small town.

there is a small fisher living in my back yard. My babysitters cats have been attacked this week many times. the fisher has come onto her porch and taken her cats down. The same fisher took a disabled woman's cocker spaniel off it leash and killed him. the collar still attached to the lead on the driveway. Granville, MA has many fisher cats to speak off.

I live in Tennessee. I don't think we have Fisher cats here. Can some of you from the Northeast give a good description-possibly a species name? Waiting for a reply.
Thanks

I live in Holbrook Mass and I have seen a fisher cat twice in the last two weeks. I was horrified when I first saw it cause I didnt know what it was. I am now nervous about my small children playing in teh back yard

Seemed odd hearing the "fawn in distress about midday yesterday. She screamed like a young child. I called my daughter Anna, come quickly. We hustled across the country road up over the old railroad tracks. The cry was closer now, having pushed through the oaks and soft pines. Less than 30 foot away scampered the old silver back fisher, now scared away from the 2 week old fawn, by our fast approaching footsteps. The fawn continued to. cry, we back off waiting on the mother of the infant, but to no avail. Anna and I could see the blood against its tender fur, above the spots on her shoulder. The only thing to do was bring her home, tend her wounds, so that is what we did. The DEC, department of environmental conservation only said the "Fisher must eat as well. We saturated the young deers fur with peroxide, and added antibiotic ointment. Later a wild life lady came told us we saved the fawn from the Fisher. It was 90 degrees, and the flies would have laid there eggs in her. She is now being taken care of and will be release this fall with 2 other orphaned deer. The fisher has had its way with my rabbits, and chickens. But today it lost!!

Spotted fisher cat crossing Old Connecticutt Path in Framingham about 2 weeks ago. had no idea what it was untiil I described it to a friend.

I have not actually seen the fisher here in West Springfield, but we have heard the cry in the woods on and off for a couple of weeks. From the above comments i am concerned for the small dogs and cats in the neighborhood.

July 7, 2007
Fisher cat spotted by neighbor - in Guilford CT. Brazen appearance during light about 5:00 PM. Came out from under neighbors deck. Clearly adapted to suburban habitat. We live on the edge of West Woods, a large wooded nature preserve. Ideal environment for Fisher Cat. Neighbors commented on decline in squirrel population from beginning of summer until now. We are greatly concerned for our infant children and house pets. Not sure how to keep them away from houses.
Sspjal

Coming home from The Nordic Lodge in Charlestown RI a large fisher cat was spotted by me and my family crossing Route 2 about 3 miles before Route 4. It crossed in front of our car and my daughter exclaimed "A SPIDER MONKEY!!" It looked like a deformed fox but twice as tall and a huge tail. He is a lucky fisher cat because this was 5 in the afternoon, we just missed hitting him and so did the oncoming traffic.

I am sure that Massachusetts, in all it's glory and wisdom, will make it an endangered species thus forcing people to keep theirs pets indoors. I'm glad I live in CA where there are only mountain lions.

Last night, I heard a horrible, loud screech and thought it may be a fisher cat.
Never heard of them before, but did last year. And tonight, the same sound,
but closer and lounder. My two small dogs started to bark and go crazy, I also
took notice and went calling my cat to come in.
Lucky for my cat, he did come home. My dogs must be aware and after cat came
in, they settled down. This is in Andover, the sound is terrible, but my boys are
all in tonight and will go out on a leash.
Scary....they seem to be all over the place. What is going on? Also, my poor
sister called the police, in Salisbury. She thought it was a person calling for help,
but was told no, a fisher cat. Seems like they are back, with a vengence....

I live in Wayland. Despite all the building, we have deer in the yard daily in our wooded swampy neck of town. The other night my roommates heard what they called screaming animals. Alas, Alister the cat disappeared. A day later they found fur like his and intestines. Now they are afraid to let the cats out even during the day. They don't understand and are going crazy. It must have been a fisher cat. Are they territorial I wonder. Could there be more than one? Could it have eaten even his scull?

[FONT=Arial] A fisher cat ate my neighbors baby duck

A fisher cat visits our yard in Haverhill a few nights each week all summer because we have an outdoor cat. It will wake us up at all hours of the night with that awful howl. It and the cat stare at each other until one of us yells at it to go away or if we call the cat to come in. The cat begs to go back out again. I worry but the cat is determined to be outside.

Saw a fisher last Friday in the middle of the day crossing Old Post Rd in Charlestown RI with a squirrel in it's mouth.
Saw one dead in the middle of Wardens Pond Rd in South Kingstown RI this morning.

I live in Lyman, ME. We let our cats out everyday (always keep them in at night). We let them out the other day at 9:30 a.m. and one of them didn't come back. There are posters of some missing animals on the telephone pole down the street from our house (a cat and a small dog).

We have noticed that there aren't alot of squirrels or chipmunks around lately also. Our other cat had a strange look in her eye the day the other cat (her best buddy) disappeared. We are keeping her in most of the time now. We're wondering if she saw what happened.

We heard strange screeching noises yesterday afternoon and last night. One time was during the day and the birds in the woods were having a fit.

I hope it's not a fisher...........but I'm afraid it probably is.

OK, really stupid question. Just what the hell is a Fisher Cat? I have a big tabby that lives in the same house I do (you don't "own" a cat, if I have to explain you don't understand)

I live in Plainfield CT. This morning 07/20/07 at approximately 8:00am I was working in my backyard along with my Father in-law when I spotted what I thought was a black weasel running around. I pointed it out to my father in-law and he stated it was a fisher cat. The fisher then spotted us and left. I did some research on line and sure enough that is what I saw. Hopefully this is the last time we see this animal due that we have small pets, however I don't believe it will be. Just wanted to share this with all and other that live in my area.

i live in southbury, ct and there is a fisher cat in my backyard. its the most annoying sound when trying to sllep at night. i now have to go outside with my dog at night time do it doesn't get attacked.

I live in Sutton 'Mass. Two of my three cats have not been seen for a couple of weeks. I was wondering if a fisher cat killed them? Then yesterday afternoon my brother-in-law came home and saw a Fisher running away with either a squirrel or rabbit in his mouth. He said it was about 36 inches long and about 20 to 30 pounds!!! When I moved here last year my neighbor told me that there was a tree in the neighborhood that fishers have baby's in every year. I was wondering how far they drag there pray before eating it so maybe I could find the remains of my pets.

i live in easthampton ma, in an area called leeds, there are at least a dozen cats missing. some body parts have been found definetly a fisher. yes they may be handsome but they are also very dangerous. they will indeed attack small animals , and have used little hesitation in chasing people , especially when they have kits(their litter). they are a cousin to the wolverine if that gives you an idea of how dangerous this animal can be.