Woman says she saw cougar near McDonald’s

on N.W. Topeka Boulevard

There is never a shortage of wildlife in Topeka and Shawnee County.

Whether it is bobcats, coyotes, foxes, deer, raccoons, opossums, snakes or even otters, they all have been known to make appearances in unusual places around town.

But what about cougars or mountain lions? 

That is where it gets a little murky.

Many wildlife and animal control officers in the area will tell you there has never been a confirmed sighting in the Topeka area.

But that isn’t to say there aren’t weekly reports of them.

Take Mary Brown’s account from her morning trip to the McDonald’s, 2001 N.W. Topeka on Sept. 5.

It was around 9 a.m., and the 74-year-old Topekan had just finished eating and was headed to her car.

That is when she saw what she described as a medium-sized, cream-colored cat with a long tail that she said was a cougar.

“It was the biggest cat I’ve ever seen,” Brown said. “I was like ‘Oh my God, he’s a huge cat.’ ”

Brown said it was laying down when she saw it past the parking lot near the timber line. It got up and went into