A leopard managed to pull a goat from the cage set to trap it, causing sleepless night to over 200 families living near the Gadananathi dam area at Ambasamuthiram near here.
Offficials said they set the trap two days back following the report that the leopard had killed pet dogs of Chelliah and Satha and dragged them to three metres on September 24.
However the leopard withtout entering the cage had deftly pulled the goat out of it, killed it and ate it and had left the pieces of flesh and bones near the cage around mid night yesterday.
Officials who rushed to see if the leopard had been trapped were surprised when the goat was missing from the cage and flesh of the goat strewn allover today.
Officials said they were now planning to set a different type of trap to catch the leopard.
Meanwhile, a coimbatore report said spotting of a leopard with a cub, triggered panic in a tea estate in Valparai today.
Some workers, who were plucking leaves in Akkamalai estate, noticed the leopard and cub moving around and ran to safety, police said.
Forest department officials have been alerted by the management, they said.
