Although I did not know Bob Cat, my thoughts and prayers go out to the Cat family.

hickolot..rflmao. i had too.

hey its beer30 @ the WH. get along pleez.

LOL What is that Pilotino?

Pilot - did you send Obama a fly trap yet?

Robert, its fireants that have killed off the quail in eastern Texas, not bobcats. Out west, where it is too dry for fireants, there remain plenty of quail and bobcats both.

John, your heart is in the right place, but the idea would never work. Wild animals running free in an enclosed area would hide and tourists would rarely see them. Also, enclosing predators with prey in an enclosed area will ONLY result in hungry predators. Those trained ex-zoo lions, leopards and other you see in the African wildlife drive-through safari parks are trained to come to feed on handouts on a stimulus (ie: horn honk, bell, etc). Maybe you could teach wolves, coyotes, or racoons to eventually get there, but not a chance with bobcats.

People, there are lots of coyotes running around Victoria, as well as Houston, Austin, Dallas...

Also, there is no documented case of either a non-rabid coyote or bobcat EVER attacking a human (unless it was cornered). NO DOCUMENTED CASES EVER or one of these animals attempting to ambush humans as prey. Feral domestic dogs on the other hand...

oh how i love these uneducated in love and respect. dissapointing to be a human to build in animals habitats. i'm ashamed. and we need more people like CATAHULA and the rest of u who respect, in this town. : )

p.s. every animal is beautiful. even if they smell or are ugly. haha

As a hunter mom and wife, the bobcat is critical to the balance of nature. It feasts on rodents and rabbits, and other populations that would just take over. When we used to run the dog behind the 4- wheeler, we always encountered a bobcat or two. Never, were we approached by these animals. In fact, on more than one occassion for both sons, we were able to take pictures of the statue in our paths. The Britney even showed respect. The coolest animal we ever saw was the jagarundi. Take that back, my best photo op was of a mother black bear and two cubs. Hub was screaming and I was clicking away. I didn't get attacked by that brood either. Son had just come down the same side trail. Wake up call for him to stay with us on the main trails. Memories, memories.....

bobcats reign terror on quail.

to a south texas bird hunter, the only good bobcat is a dead bobcat

This story makes me very sad. Much too often I see wildlife in now urban settings. In our neighborhood we have a nature area, no street lights & it's "heavily" wooded & we have lots of wildlife, no bobcats or coyotes that I've seen, though I have heard the coyotes. The more land we clear for developement,the more habitats we destroy. I love cats & bobcats were/still are my favorite when I was young. I remember when the Texas Zoo got the first bobcat, I was lucky to be able to participate in the zoo camp & I spent as much time as I could with that kitty, he was beautiful. I'll be glad when this story moves off the front page.

Bobcats don't scare me as much as a human with a microwave.

"WE NEED to watch for ANY wildlife. We are building in their habitat."

N4796V,
I am not offended, because you and I are in agreement on this point--I don't know where the miscommunication occurred...
:)

This brings up something I’ve thought about off and on. Instead of having a zoo displaying native animals, why not a nature reserve that works to preserve and increase indigenous animal populations.

No walk ways, just rides through the country-observing animals in their natural habitat. Much more could be learned from housing animals in this manner, I’m willing to bet it’s operating cost would be more cost effective.

I would even imagine over night horse riding tours, like cowboys; would bring in many people. They could even call it “Living like Old Texas Tours” or “Texas Cowboy Night Tours”. The money could be used to protect and accommodate animals moved off their lands because of development.

I’d imagine Japanese and other foreigners would be interested in visiting Victoria to see the animals experiencing being a South Texas Cowboy. I’m just talking because the Zoo is the Zoo.

What happened to the "remove post" feature? My post at 7:38 was updated and needs to be removed, but I no longer see the feature to do so.

pilot-

Now, you do make some valid points in your latest post. But earlier, when you clearly and incorrectly stated "and they are disappearing as such a fast rate," you were speaking with your emotions and doing no one any good with such erroneous information.

And that's why I stepped in to right the wrong and not let someone get the false impression that these are rare or "disappearing" animals.

And by the way, the reason many species are doing much better today than 50 years ago is because of HUNTING -- yes, HUNTING -- along with the funds generated from license/ammo sales, etc. I've yet to see one single PETA-type group do a fraction of as much good for any species.

Don't believe it? Check out the success of the National Wild Turkey Federation, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and many similar groups. Then check and see what the anti-hunting groups have actually accomplished other than things like mass extermination of mule deer and elk on Santa Rosa Island and forcing animals to suffer starvation and disease by interrupting hunting seasons and resulting in more animals than he carrying capacity of the land could handle.

And what about the re-introduction of wolves, again something spurred by the antis. Much of the elk, moose and deer populations in and around Yellowstone and into Idaho are disappearing at alarming rates. The wolves need to be REGULATED, and hunting would be the most effective approach. But the bleeding-heart liberals are out in force and doing their best to "protect" wildlife when in reality they are destroying it.

The greatest enemy of wildlife happens to be uneducated antis with cash in hand.

Chattykat:
With all due respect, sounds like you need some "nature" education. WE NEED to watch for ANY wildlife. We are building in their habitat.
roberttx:
I'll consider the source of your comment and leave it alone other than to say I'll take an alka-seltzer and it will GO AWAY.

there is no shortage of bobcats in south texas

Agree also I saw a couple last year hunting and I am sure way more saw me than I them.......was that right?

I agree with IckuhI on this one, the drought is the major factor. The search for Water and food for any animal makes it move into new unknown areas.

pilot wrote: "and they are disappearing as such a fast rate."

That sounds just like a statement issued directly from PETA or HSUS -- and it's typical hogwash...

Obviously you are not in tune with actual wildlife population dynamics. The bobcat densities are at all-time highs in many areas, and they have moved into territories they've previously never been.

What's next, calling them endangered? I wish for once folks would actually know the facts before spouting off.

too bad they didn't hit a couple more of them

Just adding to my original comment, that I also think that newcomers to Victoria and the area appreciate this kind of report, as they might not be aware of the wildlife in this area. :)

You'd be wiser to watch for coyotes. They are bigger and sneaky - will run off w/your little dog or cat. In further west states, there have been incidences of them attacking and trying to carry off small children when they are desperate enough for food. If you have any areas of brush near your house, you'd be surprised at what is living there.

Unless you are completely oblivious to your surroundings, it's no big secret that gray fox, deer, bobcats, 'coons, skunks, armadillos, 'possums and even the occasional coyote can be seen within the city limits -- and it's been that way for years.

I've even seen wild hogs on the edge of a Victoria subdivision.

But I'd hardly consider an animal being run over as newsworthy -- even on the slowest of news days. After all, the bobcat is anything but rare in Victoria County and in fact has quite a healthy population.

Just in case, though, I hear there's a smashed armadillo just past the Moody Street bridge...

Yes, I'd call it news, especially along this trail or anywhere near the city where our kids might be.

News doesn't always have to be sensational, traumatic, or about celebrities.

But, par for the course, the critics are out, as usual.

I guess a bobcat is not a big deal if you don't take your small children to walk the trail. Initially, I was just amazed at this beautiful animal and saddened that he died in that manner--until I walked to my car, which was parked in an unlit *rural-ish* parking lot. It hit me that we had been oblivious to any wildlife, besides snakes, that might lurk in the shadows as we put away our stroller and let the little ones stretch their legs before loading up to leave every night.

Also, whose to say that a bobcat or other wild animal one encounters does not have rabies? I'd rather err on the side of caution with any wild animal. I am glad the Advocate put this on the front page, as other parents are now aware of potential wildlife on the trail.

next thing will be to put up cameras throughout the trail and "alarm" press buttons like you see in large cities for emergencies.

I am sure the bobcat is not the bottom of the food chain what else is lurking in the area....chupacabras! jk, lol lol

YES WE ARE ENCROACHING ON THEIR AREA OF RESIDENCE!
It's sad that the Bobcat could not have been caught and moved to a more environment friendly area. Look at the deer that have been killed in the areas that are under construction.
Another sad day for wildlife.

a bobcat being run over is news, you got to be kidding.

"With the construction going on, they're running out of places to live," he said.

No. If you look around there is much, much more areas for them to live. The proper response that most game wardens and biologists would tell you is that as the drought conditions worsen we will see and influx of wild animals to the area. Also, predators will come into areas where there is an abundance of food. Trash, small pets and farm animals attract the opportunistic animals. It's not that we are encroching around here, we are simply giving them more of an economical choice for dinner.

And are we really that worried about a cat the size of a small dog?

"Typically, a full-grown bobcat can be anywhere from 30 to 35 pounds."

Not quite...

In this area, bobcats rarely exceed 30 pounds. Most adult males will top out at 25-26 pounds when range conditions are conducive to high prey populations. In lean years, they will weigh even less.

Adult females are typically in the 21-22 pound range.

Of dozens I have weighed over the years, only a handful reached or broke the 30-pound barrier.