A Bengal tiger is on the loose near River Road in Puyallup, Pierce County Sheriff's Department spokesman Ed Troyer said this afternoon. Crews are responding to River Road near Gay Road.
Troyer said that law enforcement and animal control were dispatched after receiving two calls from people who saw the animal.
Deputies and animal control officers have not yet found any sign of a tiger.
Travis Johnson, 20, was in his backyard when he spotted "a big boy" he described as a 200-pound blond tiger with black stripes run by.
"Cougars and bobcats, sure, but something like that - they just don't live around here," Johnson said.
The Sheriff's Department tells KING-TV that there's no exotic zoo or farm in area – and no licensed owner, either.
While wandering the woods and fields of East Pierce County, the tiger has created a Twitter account. Follow the tiger and his adventures at twitter.com/Puyallup_Tiger.
We will update this story as soon as more information is available.
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