When a bobcat kitten refused to leave the backyard of an Arizona home, it soon became clear “something was wrong,” wildlife rescuers said. Even barking dogs couldn’t make the baby bobcat move after it was discovered, nor pebbles tossed toward it, the Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center said in an Oct. 29 Facebook post. But the cat wasn’t being stubborn — it was hurt. A rescuer headed to the house in Phoenix, caught the bobcat and brought it to the conservation center’s clinic.
“Upon evaluation, vet techs noticed her front paw was extremely swollen,” the post said. Rescuers believe the kitten was either bitten by a snake or stung by a scorpion, and the wound became infected, the post said.
But the cat is receiving treatment and is expected to recover. “Nothing a little rest, medicine, and love won’t cure,” the conservation center said. Bobcats are common all across Arizona, according to the state Game and Fish Department, and while they are generally solitary animals, kittens will stay with their mother for seven months or up to a year.
It’s not clear what became of the injured kitten’s mother or siblings, or if it will be released back into the wild.