I'm a little freaked out here right about now! Yesterday Paige got off the school bus and she said there was tons of cops, a couple ambulances & firetruck down at the creek in our housing community here. Paige said she seen a lady laying on the sidewalk.
WELL. This morning I found out what had happened. We have this creek in our development that is heavily populated with people who pan for gold. A mother & her 13 year old were down on that trail & the daughter was attacked by a bobcat. The mom started fighting off the bobcat & the bobcat in turn, attacked her. The police ended up shooting & killing the bobcat after it lunged at them when they went down to the area where it happened. Mom & Daughter are OK...thank goodness...but they think the bobcat had rabies due to his aggressive bahavior. This is so scary for me!!
All the time we hear about mountain lion sightings in our community & bobcat sightings, but never a rabid one. I hear about the incidences in Flagstaff with the rabid foxes, but not here.
Our backyard is open desert, followed by a mountain full of all these little critters.
I'm a little freaked about even letting my kids outside to play! They say that when animals get rabies, they go insane....they have off the wall behavior. Makes me wonder how many of those scary little cats that are back in the open area behind our house have rabies????
Ty hikes the mountain (right next to our house) atleast once a week, on many occasions he has seen bobcats. Our neighbor even said that some of these bobcats have been spotted in other neighbors' backyards!!!! YIKES! Not very hard when your backyard fence is only 36" tall. Anyways, Ty said that when he walked up the mountain sunday, there was something staring at him at the top of the mountain. He said he couldnt tell what it was, but he could see it was looking at him... why he kept proceeding up the mountain is beyond me...apparantly when he was walking back down the creature was gone! FREAKY.
Hmmm....was it the same bobcat??? Ugh...gives me chills just thinking about it.
So , My questions is this: Am I a paranoid worried mother if I won't let my kids play outside without me present? Or, should I be totally panicked? I must admit, I do have a slight teeny weeny little tendancy to "overreact"...Maybe I am just totally over protective and fearing the worst? I dunno. Ty's reaction is this: Ahh..there kids! They'll be fine! You worry too much! Maybe I do.....
Hey Brittney, I will take your little 21" lizards over rabid bobcats Anyday!
Damn Arizona Desert!
The Morgan Bunch - Our Family Story
That is freaky, but I think you are over reacting a tad. Rabies is not as common as one might think, even IF someone/or something is bitten by an infected animal, the chance of a transfer is very slim. Here's a couple things I hope will put your mind at ease.
ReplyDelete1. In 2008 there was only 6 confirmed cases of a mountain lion/bobcat attacking humans. One of which was fatal. In the last 10 years there has only been 1 confirmed mountain lion with rabies.
2. Aggression, while yes a symptom of rabies, is one of the less common ones. Rabies follows a specific pattern. First the animal becomes lethargic. Most completely anorexic. From this point within 2 days the animal will progress to neurological symptoms: paralysis, respiratory failure, seizures, excessive salivation (or foaming), self-mutilation, and aggression is last on that list. Shortly afterwards it is followed by a very painful death.
If you are really worried about your kids, just keep a few things in mind. It is true that they are more scared of you, that you are of it. If you ever see a mountain lion or large cat, keep eye contact. Make yourself as big as possible. Never stoop, crouch, or attempt to run away. On walks you can carry a can full of rocks or coins or something. Something to rattle when in the presence of a large animal. They will run away.
Mountain lions usually eat rabbits and scavenge, it is not likely they will expend the energy to attack a human, which they know they cannot eat alone.
I am guessing that this whole attack in your neighborhood happened because 1. They were probably stooping or crouching in the area panning the gold (This makes them look like a 4 legged animal) 2. The daughter, whom I assume is a little girl probably began to run away, thus the chase is on. All cats and dogs will respond the same.
You are all smart, just be conscious of your body language. You'll have no problems. (Keep an eye out for skunks though, they are #1 on the rabies list in the US, and bats are a close 2nd.)
Hope I put your mind at ease a bit :-)
Miss you guys
Rabid bobcats OMG and I thought I had it bad! Holy Cow, I don't think your over reacting if I was you I would just stay with the kids when they are outside and I would carry a gun! Then you can shoot at whatever is a threat to your babies! :)
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