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From: rxt@lanl-a.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.pets
Subject: Re: Bobcats
Message-ID: <8537@lanl-a.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 4-Jun-84 18:31:49 EDT
Article-I.D.: lanl-a.8537
Posted: Mon Jun  4 18:31:49 1984
Date-Received: Wed, 6-Jun-84 05:44:35 EDT
References: <743@avsdT.UUCP>
Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory
Lines: 60



I was interested once in having a Cougar as a pet.  They are really pretty
cats!  I had also heard people say that wild animals will revert and
harm the owners.

My wife checked a book out of the local library (sorry, but I do not know
the name or author) on wild animals as pets.  The author apparently had
heard the same stories, and wrote an article in a paper about it,
requesting information from people who had wild animals.  He got plenty
of replies, and then went and visited many of these people.  The book
was about his experiences, but I only read about the cats.

Three families had cougars, and two (I believe) had bobcats.  One of the
families with the cougar had 6 kids.  When the author visited, the cat
was lying on the floor with 6 kids beating on it, pulling its ears and
tail, etc.  The author asked if the parents were worried, and they said
that the cat would push them away if they got too rough.  They even left
the cat to babysit the kids when they went out!  They said the oldest
kid was ten and could call the neighbors on the phone if there was any
problem, and the cat would let the neighbors in but noone else.

Another couple owned a cougar, and the wife taught kindergarden.  When
the husband was out, she would take the cat to class and let the kids
babysit the cat.  They loved it!

The only family that I remember that owned a bobcat had a mobil home.
The cat would sit out on the fence and wait, and the school bus would
come by early and let all the kids out to play with it.  It was always
waiting for them.  It would love to play with the other cats and dogs
in the neighborhood, but they would all run away from it.  It would
cry because they would all run from it (not that I blame them).
The cat snuck up behind the author while he was sitting on the couch
and hit him with his paw.  No claws, but he said it felt like a
baseball bat.  Then the cat bounced around the room and looked at him.

His conclusion was that, if a wild animal had been raised from a cub
as a member of the houshold, it was safe.  If it is confined in a cage,
it gets a zoo mentality, and is afraid - and thus dangerous.  Raising
it as a member of the family means never leaving it alone, etc.
I decided that this is quite a burden  --  you must find someone willing
to take care of it (*GOOD* care of it) while you are away, and you must
be in a neighborhood where the animal will not cause too much trouble.

There was another book called "Ocelots and Margays" that talked about
the trouble and expense of owning one of these animals.  The author
said that having a Margay around is like having a perpetual 5-year
old child.  She said that those cats are STRONG, and that they will
try to dominate you if given the chance.  She said that Margays are
about 15 pounds, but no comparison to a normal house cat (they are
solid muscle).  They also like to climb up on things and jump on your
shoulders as you pass underneath.  Ocelots are about 50 to 60 pounds,
and are also solid muscle.  She says that they like to hide behind things
and tackle you as you pass (and they make excellent fullbacks).

But it is still interesting  --  maybe if I live out in the woods
with no neighbors......


						Richard Thomsen