Bobcats are a small wild feline species known for their incredible stalking or hunting skills. They’re also famous for being shy and aloof. They don’t typically come near people, and so if you encounter one, you most likely either surprised it or it’s sick. If that happens, be sure to back away slowly, and try not to run.
However, when you see an injured bobcat, it’s hard not to want to help. This is especially true if the animal is stuck in a trap, like the bobcat in this video.
When two men saw the bobcat in these dire straits, they couldn’t just leave him.
The two men, Chris Ward and his friend Aaron, decided they couldn’t let the creature suffer, so they embarked on a mission to release it.
But the bobcat brain is pretty small and an angry, wounded bobcat has no greater instinct than to lash out at everything around it.
The two taped the encounter, which began with them announcing that they planned to free the feline, despite him being a “mean little dude.”
While he hisses, snarls, and growls, the two approach him without much of a plan, just a large stick and a duffel bag to hold around him so he can’t scratch while they try to release him.
You can’t help but feel bad for the poor little guy, who is clearly scared out of his mind. The humans, on the other hand, seem pretty confident.
There’s a big of giggling on their behalf, which makes the video harder to watch for some viewers since the cat goes berserk, likely further wounding his trapped paw.
The bobcat has no intention of being pinned down with the bag and attacks it viciously. (To be fair, he has no idea the men are trying to help him.)
When they finally manage to pin him down with the double-pronged stick for a few seconds, he quickly escapes and further protests their efforts by breaking the stick. At this point, one thinks this might be better as a two-person job, but apparently, someone has to record this for posterity.
When it begins to look like the cat is getting used to the stick, they nearly free him (and there’s some colorful language that follows that next fail).
The bobcat eventually starts treating the stick as an enemy toy, which gives one of the men a chance to get the bear trap off with his foot. And they finally free him!
At this point, one would expect the newly freed animal to turn and flee, but the cat sits upright and just stares at his rescuers. The men are puzzled and one says “he’s just chillin’, let him regain himself.”
The men give the cat a respectful moment to process the ordeal. There’s still some growling and snarling, but no effort by the bobcat to move towards the men.
Finally, he does move, but simply hides under their Jeep.
To draw the bobcat out, the men revved the jeep’s engine. This did the trick, and the bobcat ran off to freedom. Thankfully, he looked just fine as he went back into the wild!
These two rescuers risked their safety to save an animal in trouble, and thank to them, this bobcat survived and got to continue living his life.
Check out the rescue video below!
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