KENDALIA, TX — Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation is in need of donations to help care for bobcat kittens taken from their natural habitat earlier this week.
Animal Care Services says that a family living off Eisenhower Road near Salado Creek initially reported that they found the pair of felines at a back alleyway and decided to take them into their home. When they tried to feed them, the bobcats bit one of the family members.
By Wednesday, the agency found out that the young bobcats were actually found in Atascosa County. According to ACS, the family maintains that they believed the cats were bengal kittens, a rare domestic breed.
The pair of bobcat kittens have been placed at the Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation facility in Kendalia, Texas. Kelly McCoy, Director of Animal Operations, said that the bobcat kittens will need a year to a year and a half of care before they can be released back into the wild.
"At the end of their care, it will probably be several thousand dollars, making sure they can hunt, and all the hours to make sure they are healthy and getting the right care here," said McCoy of the cost to rehab the animals.
She added that this is a tragic case because now the small window of finding the felines' mom has diminished and the bobcat kittens will need intensive care to learn what they should be learning in the wild.
"They were clearly healthy, and when [the mother] returned, they were gone. And they were kind of experiencing the same loss. They were crying out for her," McCoy said.
Game Warden Captain Michael Morse says that the family could have violated a Texas Parks and Wildlife code regulation. The violation is a misdemeanor offense. The family could be facing those charges after taking in the wild animals.
ACS and a Bexar County Game Warden will continue to investigate the incident.
Until then, the Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation is reaching out to the community for donations to help provide the life-saving care the bobcat kittens need.
If you see animals in trouble, Wildlife Rescue says that you can call their 24-hour rescue hotline at 830-336-2725.