Tom Sowers' ranch at the base of the Gallatin Range

Witness: Mr. Tom Sowers
Address: 1423 Cottonwood Creek Road
Occupation: Rancher
Date of incident: September 19, 1962
Time of incident: 10:30 p.m.
Location of incident: Atkins, Montana
Incident: As the owner of a ranch at the base of the Gallatin Mountain Range, Mr. Sowers usually loses some livestock every year to predation from wolves, coyotes, bears and mountain lions.

On the night of September 19, Mr. Sowers heard his animals "raising a ruckus" outside. He took his shotgun and investigated.

When he approached his cattle pen, he saw a large animal dragging one of his calves into the forest. He described the animal as large like a bear but with an elongated head and snout like a wolf. It also had long, thick front legs. Mr. Sowers took a shot and the animal sprinted away into the forest, still carrying the calf.

Mr. Sowers said the whole experience left him nervous, and he stayed awake till sunup.

When the sun came up, Mr. Sowers checked the cattle pen and observed an unusual set of footprints on the ground. The toe pads were arrayed in an arched shape like that of a dog or wolf, but there were five of them instead of four. Most strikingly, the print measured well over one foot from the heel pad to the uppermost toe. In addition, each toe had a claw print associated with it.

Mr. Sowers immediately headed into town to report the incident.

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