When David Ritzman of Haileybury heard some yowling outside of his home earlier this week, he suspected a lynx was in the neighbourhood. He and his wife have a home near Niska Park, and lynx are common in the area. Then around 8 p.m. Oct. 27, he heard something outside his door. “We believe the lynx was here the night before as well because we heard it yowl, but didn’t see it,” Ritzman said in a social media chat Oct. 28. “I believe this one has been spotted around the area over the past week or two. Lynx are common in the area but we are new to town and not fully sure what is normal or not.” He spotted the lynx while he was bringing their dog, Nanuk, back inside. “It wasn’t afraid of people,” Ritzman said. “I suspect someone in the area has been feeding it. That’s what the police said as well, that it seemed fairly domesticated.” The lynx was quite tall -- just a bit shorter than Nanuk, a shepherd/lab mix. He was able to grab his phone and get a few seconds of the lynx as it passed by their door and kept going on into the night. “Definitely a good reason to keep people’s smaller pets like cats and small dogs under watchful eyes,” Ritzman added.
