blake
Life Member
NEWS!
Turkey Hunter Has ‘Too-Close’ Bobcat Encounter
During an average day of turkey hunting, Rick Donati of Gardner, Massachusetts, was luring toms with a push-button call box when he was knocked over by what he thought was a coyote.
But when Donati stood up, there was no coyote to be seen. Instead, he saw a 35-pound bobcat staring at him—and he’s got the claw marks to prove it.
“It had snuck up on my left side,” Donati said. “He couldn’t see me from where he was. He thought he was going to land on a turkey. He leapt off of me with such force that he pushed me backwards.”
The bobcat scratched Donati’s ear and arm.
“There was blood everywhere,” Donati said. “When it first happened, I was more mad that he kind of wrecked my whole turkey hunt. I was actually pretty lucky. It could have been serious.”
Officials considered Donati’s unprovoked bobcat encounter a rare case, since bobcats usually don’t attack humans unless they have rabies.
“It was a beautiful cat—absolutely gorgeous,” Donati said. “If it had been the season, I would have shot him. I would have tried, anyway."
Turkey Hunter Has ‘Too-Close’ Bobcat Encounter
During an average day of turkey hunting, Rick Donati of Gardner, Massachusetts, was luring toms with a push-button call box when he was knocked over by what he thought was a coyote.
But when Donati stood up, there was no coyote to be seen. Instead, he saw a 35-pound bobcat staring at him—and he’s got the claw marks to prove it.
“It had snuck up on my left side,” Donati said. “He couldn’t see me from where he was. He thought he was going to land on a turkey. He leapt off of me with such force that he pushed me backwards.”
The bobcat scratched Donati’s ear and arm.
“There was blood everywhere,” Donati said. “When it first happened, I was more mad that he kind of wrecked my whole turkey hunt. I was actually pretty lucky. It could have been serious.”
Officials considered Donati’s unprovoked bobcat encounter a rare case, since bobcats usually don’t attack humans unless they have rabies.
“It was a beautiful cat—absolutely gorgeous,” Donati said. “If it had been the season, I would have shot him. I would have tried, anyway."