We all head to our nation’s zoos and theme parks when we get the itch to catch a glimpse of animals that may be hard-to-spot in their natural habitats, but every once in a while, a beast just shows up right at our doorsteps. Just ask Dan Guerndt, a Wisconsin resident who was recently treated to quite the wild sight—a nosy cougar.

Just this past week, Brookfield’s Guerndt noticed some rather large animal prints in the snow on his property. When he followed them, he came to one, pretty creepy realization—they led all the way from the woods behind his home right up to his back door. Scary, huh?

Unable to identify the prints, the homeowner took a look at the footage from his home security system. It was then that he realized that this mystery animal was none other than a big cat—a cougar to be exact. He quickly posted the clip on social media and soon after, local news stations were lapping up the story.

Here’s what Guerndt had to say about his initial reaction to the startling playback. “I couldn’t believe what I saw. A really big cat,” the homeowner told Fox 6. “I was hoping it didn’t see my cat, break the window or something.”

We’re no experts on cougars, but we’re willing to bet that things wouldn’t have ended so well if his housecat went nose-to-nose with this wild animal!

This mystery cougar’s long, dangerous journey

One of the more intriguing aspects of this story is the fact that cougars are hardly ever spotted in this region of Wisconsin. In fact, various interviews with homeowners and wildlife experts alike confirm that most have never even seen direct evidence of a big cat in these parts.

That being said, they believe that the same wandering feline that was captured on camera by Guerndt has recently made appearances all the way on the other side of the state. In fact, experts are saying that they have footage of the very same cat more than 60 miles north of Brookfield just two weeks earlier.

Though it’s not unusual for cougars to travel long distances, the wildlife experts say that they are almost never spotted near populated areas. This fact leads them to believe that the big cat may be injured or lost. Agents with the Department of Natural Resources have attempted to neutralize the feline on several occasions, but so far, they’ve had no luck.

We sure hope that this wandering cougar gets the help he needs. Poor guy! To see how this voyeuristic big cat became a viral sensation, be sure to watch the video below. It’s a short clip, but one that’s sure to get your heart racing—this ain’t your average tabby!

We’d love to hear your take on this nosy cougar. Have you ever gotten a visit from a big cat like this? If so, how did you handle the situation? Have you ever had any brushes with a dangerous wild animal before?