Two people were left requiring hospital treatment after their neighbourhood was terrorised by a “fierce beast”. And while dangerous animals on the loose can be commonplace in Florida at times, this was different.
Because the ferocious feline that had was terrifying residents of Suwannee county turned out to be a domestic cat with a bit of an atittude problem. The cat was at large for almost a week as it evaded law enforcement.
Deputies from the sheriff’s office laid traps for the cat, but it managed to escape their clutches. Instead, the office’s animal control unit is advising the public to be “mindful of the feral cat or any other animals in the area that present signs of rabies”.
The Guardian claims Sheriff Sam St John’s office said: “During two separate incidents, residents exercising and walking on 174th Street were attacked by a feral cat. Both residents received injuries serious enough that they had to seek medical treatment at local hospitals.”
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St John has so far declined to issue a rabies alert “due to the cat not being captured and not being able to confirm if the cat has rabies or not”. Although a deputy said they were hopeful the cat would be apprehended.
It left residents in Luraville, 17 miles south-west of the county seat, Live Oak, needing to exercise “extreme caution” when outdoors. Comments on the sheriff’s social media included residents fearful that the public would be scared enough to declare “open season” on any cats found outside.
Authorities said without capturing the feline, they could not determine whether it was feral or a house cat. Or if it was infected with conditions such as rabies.
