Yes, there are big kittehs, and then there are bobcats. But as someone who has personally met a couple bobcats in the Hollywood hills, bobcats are unmistakable. Considering the guy says he was attacked *inside* a condo, I have a feeling it was the big kitteh. But you can’t sue for being scratched by a big kitteh. And bobcat is so much more dramatic. Maybe they were hoping she’d settle?
A Florida contractor says he was attacked by a bobcat inside a woman’s condo, but the animal’s owner says her feline is no predator, just a 10-pound domestic longhair kitty named Calli.
The contractor, Marcos Hernandez, filed a lawsuit in Tampa on Dec. 19, alleging condo owner Christine Lee illegally kept a bobcat inside her unit. He said a bobcat scratched him on May 16, causing serious injuries after he entered the condo to conduct a fire safety inspection.
Hernandez was in the condo alone, Lee said, something that shouldn’t have happened. She said an employee from the building was supposed to accompany him inside.
“This has gotten so blown out of proportion, it’s ridiculous,” Lee said.
According to the lawsuit, Hernandez said he was attacked by an unleashed bobcat and suffered permanent injuries. He’s seeking a jury trial and unspecified damages. Hernandez said Lee had a duty to provide a safe environment and failed to warn him about the bobcat.
Lee said that’s nonsense. She only has a fluffy, tortoiseshell-colored housecat and a sleeker black cat named Max. She doesn’t know which cat may have scratched Hernandez, but Max’s color would likely rule him out.
She has not yet retained an attorney… “A bobcat does look much different than this. They’re much bigger than this 10-pound little thing,” she said. “It’s a litigious society and here we are.”
That’s right. And really, what lawyer would accept this case? Now that it’s made the news, maybe this will be withdrawn.
>Actual bobcat,
a cousin of the lynx. Both males and females can reach about 30 lbs. Generally, at 20 lbs, they’re twice as large as the average housecat. Note short tail (hence the ‘bob’ in bobcat), pointy ears and mountain lion-like build.
Flashing back to that incident a couple years ago when a man called 911 to resolve a standoff with his pet cat. Here’s a partial transcript:
