I am continuing to investigate which of the animals we share our environment with are responsible for the demise of our domestic pets. I suspected initially Coyotes were the main predators, I'm discovering that may not be the case, the city-dwelling canines have a diet consisting of only 8% domestic cats according to one study. It's a broad brush stroke to assume that is the case in every city setting, the 8% number was discovered in Los Angelos. I'm not sure how to get a national number so I will take the 8% as a starting point of which I am confident over the years will change as more studies are conducted. I discovered another interesting fact I was unaware of, my knowledge of the big cats is limited, all I really know is they are interesting and beautiful animals. Cheetahs, do not roar, the sounds they make are limited to purring, barking, bleating, growls, hisses, and chirps, No meows, or growls, it has to do with their vocal chords which I can not explain to you in a way that it will make any sense. Back to the demise of domestic pets, which wild animals prey on them, I'm taking a look at the Bobcat, they are more common than what we may expect.
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The Bobcat does resemble a Cheetah in a way, the spots
mostly. |
As with all wild animals I have a solid respect for them, they are one of the two animals I have a lot of respect for. The other animal is alligators, I have never been around them, my only exposure to them has been watching documentaries, and reading articles written about them, to me they are unbelievably interesting. I have however had numerous encounters with Bobcats, they are aggressive, (from my perspective) and extremely tough animals. I was backpacking one day around a man-made lake just east of Fresno California, it was a bright clear day, I forget what month or time of year. I had hiked several miles when I saw a Bobcat on the trail ahead of me, he was about 50 yards away, perhaps closer but no further. Most of the time when I have run into one previous to this encounter the animal runs away and is out of sight in seconds, this one was different. I am always aware of the possibility of a rabid animal, especially wild animals. If you have ever seen an animal suffering in the final stages of rabies it is an event that a person never forgets, foaming at the mouth is one of the final stages. When I was about 10 years old my older brother, who was 15 at the time shot a big black dog through the screen door with a 22 caliber rifle, the foaming at the mouth dog scared me very badly. Since then my awareness of rabid animals has been a real ingredient of my wandering in the wilderness, so when a wild animal is unusually aggressive I immediately suspect rabies. Such was the case with this Bobcat, he stood his ground and making it impossible to pass him, other than my pocket knife and a larger one in my pack I had no other defensive weapons. I never carried a firearm in the wild, I cannot think of a time when I even remotely needed one, even in the face of this cat I did not feel I needed that advantage. Even the California Black Bears are not generally aggressive, and none I have met in the woods were ever even 1/2 as aggressive as this Bobcat. (follow this
Link for a more in-depth description of Bobcats.) The second thought is that it was a female and had cubs somewhere very close and was keeping me away to allow them to make their getaway. She was staring me down, and she (I did at this point assume she was protecting cubs, hence causing me to change sexes.) took three slow steps towards me down the trail. She broke her gaze took the same number of steps backward, spun and disappeared into the low lying bushes towards the top of the hill. I don't categorize that encounter as anything but a mother protecting her young and I being in the wrong place at the wrong time, the episode passed and I did not see her again.
What makes up a Bobcat's life, what do they eat, what is their habitat, are they becoming adapted to the close proximity of us as we forever spread out into new areas? Do they attack humans, and just as importantly are they responsible for any of the deaths of our pets.
The first point worth establishing is that they are not afraid of humans in the least, which is the reason we should never set food out for them, it makes them even less afraid. They sometimes get so aggressive towards humans they must be euthanized by local animal control departments. They react to us much in the same way the female on the trail reacted to me, they will be aggressive, more rarely attacking, but they sure make it look like they will. If we get bitten or scratched by one, immediate medical attention is imperative, and treatment for rabies will be administered.
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They are beautiful, dangerous animals, all mountain Lions
resemble this one. |
Bobcats have a wide varied diet consisting of mice, squirrels, chickens, cottontail rabbits, birds, jackrabbits, and here it is, domestic cats and small dogs left unattended outdoors. They are like Coyotes preditors of what presents itself. They are not considered a danger to humans, they rarely attack us, I guess they just do a lot of bluffing, however, if you turn and run they may consider you to be prey and chase you, that's where the encounter takes a negative turn. They do on occasion circle a human, sometimes there will be more than one, I imagine it is a frightening display when 4 or more challenge a person in each direction. Making a lot of noise will most of the time frighten them away, (hazing), bang on pots and pans. Bobcats are nocturnal, making the one I encountered in the middle of the day a rarity, she may have been moving her young. Hunting mostly at dusk and dawn, they sleep most of the day away in dens inside a hollow tree, or a small cave, they have several dens in their home range. Bobcats make horrible pets, as most wild animals do, when young they are soft cuddly and cute, we must remember they are wild animals and they will always be wild. The tail is a natural "bob", meaning stubbed, twice the size of a domestic cat, equipped with long legs, huge paws, (that is one feature that stood out, very large paws.) and tufted ears, their cousin the Lynx is considerably larger. Bobcats are named after their "Bobbed" tail, sometimes they are referred to as "wildcats", another very descriptive name. They have few natural predators, Mountain Lions being one and you guessed it the other is humans, in fact, sometimes the Bobcat is seriously injured from prey animals. Young small Bobcats are killed by Eagles, Great Horned Owls, Coyotes, Foxes, Bears, and as is many times the case other adult Male Bobcats. (What is it with us males of the world?) there is no dought in my mind that when preyed upon they become formidable foes. They may not be able to kill a Cougar or Coyote but I am sure the larger animal knows it had been in a fight. Baby Bobcats are called "Kittens", it's kind of surprising but it isn't, the young do look just like a domestic kitten, they are born into a litter of one to eight. Their historic habitat is from Northern Mexico to Southern Canada, during the first half of the 20th century they were hunted nearly to extinction in the Midwestern and Eastern United States, the fur was very valuable. They are able to run 25-30 mph and leap a staggering 12 feet through the air to take down prey. A five-foot chain link fence will keep them out of your yard.
There are some things we can do to minimize out encounters with the cats:
1) Take a defensive position in front of pets and children, make yourself large, do not turn your back on them.
2) Back away from them, to step forward is a movement of aggression, the animal may become defensive, and in so being a formidable foe.
3) Never run away from a Bobcat, in fact never run away from any wild animal, it may trigger a pursuit response causing them to chase and attack you.
4) Like all cats they are not fond of water, if available spray them with water they will run off, maybe thinking a bath is next.
5) Hazing works, as with most wild animals loud noises alarm them and make them flee, air horns, whistling, and banging of pots together are good noisemakers.
Bobcats will prey on free-ranging livestock when they do re-location is the correct course of action, the fish and game will assist in its relocation. They will take an occasional domestic or feral cat, they are not a major part of their diet, as stated above they are predators of convenience, preying on domestic pets only when they are easy pickings.
Bobcats are not a major preditor of our pets, in fact, they take a back seat to their much larger cousin, the Mountain Lion, I wonder how much of an impact they have on the local cat population, I will investigate and write a blog on it. There are no recorded instances of Bobcats killing a human that I can find, I will continue looking but it seems highly unlikely. Deaths have most likely been caused by being bitten by a rabid animal and not getting treatment for whatever reason, other than that there are no reported instances. (reported being the key word here.)
They do not pose a major threat to our pets, us, or most things we are involved in. Thank you for reading and sharing my blog, comment and tell me about your experiences with Bobcats. I'd like to hear from someone that has one as a pet, to domesticate one has got to take a very special kind of person.
jacquesandkate
EmergencyKitsPlus.com
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