On September 29, the Tennessee Wildlife Agency shared the tale of a woman whose attempt to aid an injured animal almost had dire consequences.
According to the agency, a West Tennessee woman was driving when she noticed a Bobcat near the road. Believing the animal to be injured, the woman managed to get the animal inside her vehicle and transported it to her home.
Originally, the woman planned to keep the Bobcat overnight and contact a licensed rehabilitator the next day, but those plans changed when she realized she had one very awake, and very unhappy, wild animal in her laundry room.
Photos: Facebook/Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
According to the story, which originally appeared on the agency’s Facebook page, the Bobcat became “unmanageable,” leading the woman to call for officers to remove it. Once representatives of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency arrived at the scene, they were able to closely examine the animal and determined its injuries were minor. Thankfully, it was able to be released back into its natural habitat.
This is just one of many examples of people with good intentions causing more harm than good. Earlier this year, Texas Hill Country posted articles focusing on how to handle fawns that appeared to be orphaned. Those rules apply across a wide spectrum of wildlife species. Typically, the best course of action is no action at all, but when in doubt contact your local game warden or wildlife expert.
