In "Panther's Moon" by Ruskin Bond, the eponymous big cat is a ferocious man-eater that kills humans and animals in the village of Manjari. Even though the panther lives in the forest, its hunting skills have been impaired ever since some greedy hunters took a shot at it. And so, the wounded panther makes regular sorties into the village and its surrounding areas in the hope of killing humans and animals.

One such animal is Sheru, the dog belonging to the story's protagonist, a young Himalayan boy called Bisnu. The dog is taken away one day by the panther, never to be seen again. As one can imagine, Bisnu is absolutely petrified that he might be next.

As it's summertime in the village, people have to sleep with their windows open at night. This only makes it easier for the panther, who sneaks into the house of Kalam Singh and attacks his son Sanjay, who miraculously survives this savage mauling. A furious Kalam vows to kill the panther.

But in the meantime, the panther continues his predatory rampage. He helps himself to an old woman, causing Bisnu to become so frightened that he stops going to school. But because his exams are coming up soon, he eventually has no choice but to try and put aside his fears and go back.

One day, while walking home from school with a goat calf, Bisnu is suddenly attacked by the panther. The young boy darts up into a tree for safety, and cries for help with as much breath as he can muster.

After a lot of searching, a group of men from the village led by Kalam Singh manages to find Bisnu. When they find him, they can see that the panther is still waiting for the boy at the foot of the tree. Kalam wastes no time in killing the big cat with a spear, thus ending all the recent chaos and bloodshed.