Bobcat's house call wild, woolly

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Current News - Homefront Preparations : One Thread

By Electa Draper Denver Post Four Corners Bureau

Wednesday, December 25, 2002 - DURANGO - It was a catfight of unusual proportions.

Post / Shaun Stanley

Dave Weisfeldt holds his cat Slider in his Durango home. The house was invaded early Saturday by a bobcat seeking a breakfast of domestic cat. Weisfeldt and his two pet cats were unharmed.

Dave Weisfeldt was asleep on his living room couch about 4:30 a.m. Saturday. He had drifted off while watching TV, snug in his home in a peaceful neighborhood just a few blocks off Durango's North Main Avenue.

He awoke at the bang of the pet door. He was sleepy and only vaguely aware that one of his cats had sped through the room in a dark blur and dived under the low futon-style sofa where he was stretched out.

"I thought it was my cat Moloko. It seemed odd he would be so fired up about something at that hour of the morning," he said.

Then Weisfeldt saw another pair of cat eyes glittering under the coffee table. This cat was a big cat, a knee-high bobcat. It looked intent upon chasing its prey but could not squeeze its 20- to 30-pound girth under the sofa.

"I jumped up and screamed," Weisfeldt said. "It's hard to tell who was more surprised. I don't think this bobcat intended to encounter a human. It was in hot pursuit and found itself trapped in a house. It ran into my bedroom."

Weisfeldt said he was worried that his other cat, a black female named Slider, might be in the bedroom, so he followed the bobcat to defend her, if necessary.

"As soon as I walked in the bobcat felt cornered and came after me. I slammed the door between us. Then I could hear him banging around the bedroom."

The 33-year-old Durango High School history teacher said he did not call the Division of Wildlife or 911 because he did not want to wait 10 to 15 minutes for help.

"I wanted the bobcat out of the house now," he said. "I picked up a golf club and a big wooden walking stick and walked back into the bedroom. The plan was to wave the sticks and chase him out of the house through the other door in the bedroom."

But, after enduring several minutes of Weisfeldt's shouting and the brandishing of the seven iron, the bobcat looked disoriented and annoyed. It alternately wandered in and out of curtains and hissed at him.

"It popped out behind a curtain and started staring me down. Then it sat in the middle of my bed. I didn't feel like it was threatening me then. I finally picked up my camera that was right there and took four pictures. As you can see, he was not a happy camper."

Next Weisfeldt left his bedroom. He opened up all the exits the bobcat could use for its escape. Then he made banging noises outside his bedroom door. The cat fled the house.

Weisfeldt coaxed his white male cat, Moloko, out from under the couch, but Slider could not be found. And it was not like her to wander from home.

The Division of Wildlife later reported that a bobcat had eaten two pet cats in Weisfeldt's neighborhood late Friday and early Saturday. Weisfeldt began searching for Slider but had no luck.

When, exhausted, he finally fell into his bed, he realized it was soaked through with bobcat urine.

Division of Wildlife Area Manager Tony Gurzick said it is unusual for a bobcat to wander into a busy, densely settled residential area. Bobcats generally avoid human contact even more assiduously than their much-larger relative, the mountain lion does, he said.

Durango animal-control officers trapped the cat Saturday morning and released it into the wilds near Durango.

It was Sunday afternoon before Weisfeldt's pet door banged again and an uninjured Slider came strolling in, "rather nonchalantly," Weisfeldt said.

Weisfeldt said he learned something from this brush with a wild animal.

"I need a smaller cat door."

-- Anonymous, December 26, 2002

Answers

We used to have a bobcat come up to the porch and eat the outdoor cat food. The first time I saw him, I thought, 'what a strange looking cat and so big'. I had no idea there were bobcats in this area :lol

-- Anonymous, December 26, 2002

"When, exhausted, he finally fell into his bed, he realized it was soaked through with bobcat urine." So what's the verdict here, does he have to throw his bed away?

-- Anonymous, December 26, 2002

I'm betting bobcat pee smells a wee bit stronger than housecat pee. Yep, I bet he has to throw that thing away. (We have a waterproof mattress cover on our bed just in case one of the cats gets peed off.)

-- Anonymous, December 26, 2002

I'd throw it away.

Funny that he took four pictures of the thing peeing on the bed. LOL

-- Anonymous, December 26, 2002


Moderation questions? read the FAQ