‘Big cat’ caught on CCTV prowling streets of Birmingham

'I had the shock of my life when I saw that thing come into view. I was physically shaking'

A mysterious creature which some believe could be a lion, has been filmed roaming the streets of a West Midlands town.

Dawn Paige said she got the "shock of my life" when she spotted the animal as she checked her security camera footage after someone had moved her bins at her home in Oldbury, near Birmingham.

“I thought it was kids messing around,” said the 53-year-old teaching assistant. “I had the shock of my life when I saw that thing come into view. I was physically shaking.

“At first, I thought it must be a big dog, but it moves just like a cat. I took the footage into work and asked some of the teachers what they thought, and they agree with me it looks like a leopard, or a she-lion. I've got a little dog and I'm absolutely terrified for her safety.”

Standing at around a metre tall, the creature which moves in a manner reminiscent of a big cat, appears to have a long tail.

Dudley Zoo, less than four miles from Oldbury and home to several species of big cat, said all its animals were accounted for.

The zoo added its experts had seen the video, but were unable to say for certain what the creature was.

“We were sent the footage and we could not positively identify what the animal was, but it may have possibly been a large dog,” a spokesman said.

West Midlands Police said no one had reported the incident to them and therefore no investigation had been launched.