i read about the old mountain men and their favorite delicacy was puppy cooked in a clay pot indian style
close second was mountain lion...or a “painter” as they called it
still hear of lion hunters who eat “painter” and they say its wonderful...poor kitty
but if you got too many of any kind of animal eating them is a great solution...kill em and grill em...poodles with noodles yummy
That's a remnant of Scotch-Irish dialect. "Painter" is panther with a slight brogue and a hard "th." All the old "painter" tales from the colonial era in NC is why the Carolina Panthers were so named.
A ghost was a "haint" (haunt), same dialect. "Haint Blue" was the color you painted your porch ceiling to keep them away, lol. The color has had something of a revival, it's actually quite nice and soothing. It just looks cooler on a hot day.