Newtus - I live in the city where we have neighborhoods with sidewalks and small yards. When I've had a cat take off, even in my neighborhood they can be impossible to find. One we never found. So I really do get what it must be like living in wide open spaces. And I can't imagine shooting a dog that gets in my yard, but I can certainly understand why someone who lives in wide open spaces and an unknown big dog comes in your yard - you have to worry about it. They can eat up chickens etc., scare horses, fight with and injure dogs that belong on the property. They could have rabies. Or they could be aggressive, and I can understand a person not wanting to wait to find out. I'm not condoning the neighbor shooting the dog, but maybe he had a really bad experience in the past with a strange dog coming on his property.

Anyway, wild cats are wild cats. And with perhaps some exceptions, Wild cats are not really domesticated. If they take off, there is little you can do about it.

If the cat wanders back, you could take it to a shelter, but wild cats are difficult to adopt out, and there's a good chance he may be put down. He may live longer if left in the wild.

I mainly just wanted to support you, and let you know that I do get how the circumstances you and the animals around you are in is very different from those of us who live in well developed towns and cities.

And I don't think anyone is angry with you. I just think they love animals and don't understand how it works where you are.