3 hurt in San Antonio after family takes home kittens, finds out — painfully — they are bobcats

Matthew Diebel | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Those are not house cats A Texas family with good intentions tried to save a group of stray kittens. They learned the hard way that the little critters were baby bobcats.

Whoa, kitties!

The fur is flying after three people in San Antonio were injured by two bobcat cubs they mistook for domestic kittens.

The cuter-than-cute critters were found by a family and taken home. And that’s when the feisty felines attacked.

"She tried to feed them some kitten milk, and during the process of doing that, three people were bitten," said Lisa Norwood, a spokesperson for the local Animal Care Services agency (ACS). "Not bad bites, but bites nonetheless. They're seeking medical attention right now."

After the incident, Norwood told San Antonio TV station KENS on Monday, the family decided to look online and noticed the young animals were bobcats.

"Once they started taking a look at the kittens, seeing how big they were, how robust they were, how their tails were bobbed," they started thinking, " 'You know what, these don't look like your standard house cat. Maybe we should call somebody.' Thankfully, they did," Norwood said.

An ACS officer took the baby bobcats to Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation, a local animal-advocacy charity, where they are under quarantine. A spokesperson for the rehab center told the station that they will be monitored to make sure they can be released to a protected site. Adult bobcats can weigh as much as 40 pounds.

The family who found the animals, however, now faces trouble, KENS reported on Wednesday. Rather than being found in a back alley, as the family claimed, investigators now believe that the young bobcats were actually found in Atascosa County, a rural area southwest of San Antonio, by a relative of the bite victims. According to ACS, this person believed the animals were Bengal kittens, a highly prized domestic breed.

In light of the new information, the ACS Field Enforcement Division is working with the Texas State Parks and Wildlife agency to determine whether charges will be filed in connection with illegal disturbance of wild animals.

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“After conducting the initial investigation, these additional details make this a much more severe issue from a rabies control standpoint, from a jurisdictional standpoint and from a legal standpoint," ACS assistant director Shannon Sims said. “With the increased implications and the fact that this falls under the jurisdiction of our Texas Game Wardens, we will continue to work with them to investigate the potential criminality of the animal’s capture and relocation.”

Meanwhile, Lynn Cuny, founder and president of Wildlife Rescue & Rehabilitation, says she hopes the incident draws attention to the need for heightened wildlife protection and public awareness.

“The real story of these bobcats is one of tragedy, not one of 'cute babies,' " Cuny told KENS. "These two infants’ lives were altered the moment they were stolen from their mother. Not only will they never know her loving care, but these bobcats now have to be raised by humans, their No. 1 predator.

“Though we trust they will do well, the fact is that no wild animal baby should ever have to make such a traumatic adjustment and suffer the trauma of being orphaned.”

Sharon Ko and Cameron Songer of TV station KENS contributed to this story.