A wild bobcat narrowly avoided death after it was hit by a car Friday and got stuck in its grille. The animal was struck after darting in front of an Arizona couple's Mazda sedan as they headed to a restaurant. The couple was certain they had fatally hit the cat. But when they arrived at the restaurant, they found the wildcat in the grille — completely unscathed. "We didn't think any kind of animal could sustain that kind of hit," A.J. Michaels told NBC affiliate KPNX.

Scottsdale police officers who responded to Michaels' emergency call tried to coax the animal out of the space between the radiator and the grille of the car — but the cat had apparently gotten comfortable. Arizona Game and Fish officials had to sedate the animal in order to remove it. The bobcat was evaluated and is now being kept at Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center. The bobcat will likely be released beyond Scottsdale city limits, said Lynda Lambert, an Arizona Game and Fish spokeswoman.

SOCIAL

Caring for this little guy @SouthwestWildlife Bobcat hit by car, trapped in grille-CBS 5 - KPHO http://t.co/MkTnw3CpyZ — Southwest WildlifeCC (@SWWildlifeCC) January 4, 2015

— Elisha Fieldstadt