A Utah deputy was called out on Nov.21 to apprehend a small, furry, but still quite dangerous intruder.
A man from Kanarraville, Utah, called the Iron County Sheriff’s Office around 8 a.m. to report a bobcat in his chicken coop.
There were no conservation officers on duty yet, Lt. Del Schlosser told Fox News, so Deputy Michael Hilleger was dispatched to make the animal arrest.
Deputy Hilleger cautiously entered the chicken coop. Instead of a scene of poultry carnage, what the officer saw was a baby bobcat crouched atop a tall shelf, huddled up to the chicken-coop heat lamp.
The deputy tried to chase the cat out of the coop, but the feline intruder was just too comfortable. Finally Hilleger had to don a pair of heavy leather gloves, reach into the coop, and grab the wild cat by the scruff of the neck.
Deputy Hilleger carried the snarling cub out into a nearby field and turned it loose.
At first the cat headed straight back toward the coop. The officer managed to chase it away.
“I did not expect to deal with a bobcat, especially right there, first thing in the morning,” Hilleger told Fox News. “That was a strange call for me, for sure.”
The chickens, apparently never having seen a baby bobcat, were totally unruffled by the presence of a potential predator.
The homeowner took photographs of the whole event.
The rescue was also recorded on the deputy’s body-cam.
He Slept so Well the Night Before …
The baby bobcat had learned a lot from its experience—particularly, that it could sleep in a warm room and get a gentle wake-up the next morning.
Therefore, it returned to the coop Wednesday night. This time, however, it did kill a chicken.
When the property owner found the small cat back in the coop Thursday morning, he trapped the cat in the coop and again called for official intervention.
This time Wildlife Resources Officer Josh Carver showed up to capture the wayward cat. He took the creature into custody and brought it home with him.
After all, it was Thanksgiving.
Officer Carver fed the cat some turkey and gave it a warm place to sleep before taking it out Friday morning on Pine Valley Mountain, far enough from civilization that the cat—hopefully—wouldn’t be able to find the same chicken coop again.
Carver followed a dirt trail up Pine Valley Mountain until he saw some fresh road kill. He released the cat there, so it would have a ready food source.
The cat wasn’t thrilled about being caged—or about being released. Carver had to retreat a few times because the cat tried to claw him when he tried to unlatch the cage.
Eventually a second officer had to distract the bobcat with a stick to give Carver time to open the door.
The bobcat cub was about the size of a large domestic housecat—but was considerably more aggressive. Carver estimated the animal to be about 4 to 6 months old.
“I’m hoping he makes it, he’s young,” Carver told Fox. “[He’s a] tough little guy.”
