Pregnant Bobcat Likely Struck by Vehicle Returns to the Wild to Give Birth!
A bobcat, rescued by San Diego Humane Society’s Humane Law Enforcement in Rancho Bernardo and treated by medical staff through our Project Wildlife program, has been released back into the wild. The injured bobcat was found in the median of Bernardo Center Road on Dec. 16, 2020, and taken to our Pilar & Chuck Bahde Wildlife Center in San Diego for triage care. Veterinarians determined the bobcat had likely been struck by a vehicle and needed extensive medical treatment at our Ramona Wildlife Center.
Once sedated, veterinarians performed an ultrasound and discovered the bobcat was pregnant and suffering from a fractured jaw. For weeks, medical staff at the Ramona Wildlife Center worked to stabilize and strengthen the cat’s jaw with sutures and wiring. As the bobcat slowly recovered, she progressed in stages from eating a soft diet to chopped foods and eventually to solid foods and her natural prey diet.
“This bobcat is a fighter and we are thrilled she has returned to her natural habitat,” said Christine Barton, director of operations and wildlife rehabilitation at the Ramona Wildlife Center. “We are lucky that she continued eating on her own through her treatment as daily hand-feeding of an adult bobcat would not have been feasible. This case was extra special, since we learned during her initial ultrasound that she was expecting kittens! We’ve been like a protective extended family, preserving not one, but three lives! We are happy that she and her unborn kittens can resume their role as apex predators here in San Diego County.”
The bobcat was released in the late afternoon of Sunday, Jan. 17, 2021, in Rancho Bernardo, not far from where she was found.
San Diego County is one of the most biologically diverse areas in the United States with the greatest number of endangered species. People from all over the county bring wildlife patients to San Diego Humane Society’s Project Wildlife program for rehabilitation and care.
Published: January 18, 2021
