Bobcat Cub Bites Man At Linville Gorge

MORGANTON, N.C.,None — A nice stroll at Linville Gorge turned into a bobcat cub attack after one Morganton man separated the cub from his dog.

Brandon Koontz, 28, and Buttons, his terrier mix, were hiking Rock Jock Trail on the western side of Linville Gorge when a bobcat cub came onto the trail. Buttons, who was not on a leash, ran ahead of Koontz and when he rounded the corner the two were "playing."

"She was playing with the cat much like she plays with the cats at home," Koontz said. "When I saw the two they seemed to be getting along, but at the risk that one would hurt the other, I decided I should separate the two."

Koontz said he pulled his terrier from his new play date and it must have startled the cub.

"When I picked up Buttons I guess it scared the little cub and it began to claw and bite the back of my leg," Koontz said.

He said he handed Buttons to a fellow hiker, because the cat would not let go of his leg. He said he shook the cat loose and it ran into the wooded area surrounding the trail.

"It was clawing my leg and biting me," Koontz said. "Once I got it to release, it ran into the woods, turned back and growled at me."

Koontz said the attack wasn't painful, but it definitely startled all parties involved.

"You know, I didn't even realize I'd been bit until about a mile up the trail," Koontz said. "I had no sinister feelings towards the little cub. It just seemed scared."

He said the cat was only about a foot long. He said it was the first time he'd ever run into a bobcat on the trail.

Koontz, after a bit of convincing by his sister, who is a nurse, said he has gotten numerous rabies shots.

"I waited a week before my sister convinced me to get rabies shots," Koontz said. "I had eight shots at first, and then there are three I've had to have since. I didn't think it was that big of a deal, but I figured it was better to be safe."

A round of rabies shots typically cost around $3,000, according to Tony Robinson, former wildlife officer and a News Herald contributor.

"It may not seem like a big deal, but those shots, while they may not hurt, are pretty expensive," Robinson said.

Robinson said getting these shots is always a good precautionary step.

"I mean the odds would be good that nothing would come from it, but there is no way you could be sure," Robinson said. "If you knew all you had to do was to take a shot to get vaccinated, then you should just do it. Even if it's 1-in-10 chance that there might be something bad, you shouldn't take the chance. The risk is too great to not do it."

Robinson said the public should be aware that when they are dealing with a wild mammal they should always be alert and careful.

"People can get rabies," Robinson said. "It does happen and it can. It's just another reminder that the public needs to be careful."

WSOC