# GSD and guy attacked by a Rabid Bobcat in Arizona



## LoboFloppyEars (Oct 15, 2016)

Yawn these forums have been kinda boring lately but I'mma try to liven things up a bit.

This video recently appeared of an Arizona man and GSD being attacked by a Bobcat. WARNING: GRAPHIC






Couple of things, I have a hard time telling if this dog is biting the cat or if the cat is just latched onto the dog using his teeth and his claws.

Two, I have no idea what the bite force is in a Bobcat but that looks painful. Shoot that dude definitely needs stiches. 

Three, idk if all Bobcats move like that, but it has a very comical way of running almost like out of a cartoon.

I saw this video in a link on the Facebook Fox News page and the real fun was in the comments. Lots of people were poking fun at the dog, calling a sissy. Several saying, "my dog coulda killed it!" and others pointing out several breeds from fighting breeds to GSDs could have killed the dog

Someone even said, just let the dog and the cat duke it out. Lots of people claiming that due to the bobcat being wild the GSD stands no chance.

I said in the comments that breed doesn't matter, it's gameness and prey drive that matter. I said that since this GSD looks like an ASL, it probably doesn't has a lot of prey drive.

But anyways let's discuss this here.


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## ausdland (Oct 21, 2015)

Wow I never worried about bobcats before. Hope everyone is alright and who in the heck records this stuff instead of helping


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## LoboFloppyEars (Oct 15, 2016)

ausdland said:


> Wow I never worried about bobcats before. Hope everyone is alright and who in the heck records this stuff instead of helping


Yeah I hope I never encounter one while with my boy. Mine is a cat chaser and might want to go after it and force the bobcat into a fight situation. Even if my boy might be able to take on a bobcat I would want to avoid it as much as possible.


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## emilymarie0208 (Jul 19, 2017)

The other day my GSD and I were on a walk at about 7 pm out in my neighborhood which is right next to the desert in North Phoenix, we ran into a bobcat and I freaked out because I had never seen one before. My dog remained calm and we calmly walked away into someones yard to hide and had my mom come and pick us up in her car cause I wasn't sure if the bobcat would stick around or not.

I had no idea what to do in that situation, I wasn't sure if they were aggressive or would feel challenged if I made noise to try to scare it away, but I researched it and it said that most of them don't attack things that are bigger than them so when I saw this video I was shocked!! All of my friends sent it to me because they thought I was being dramatic for being so afraid lol


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## Heartandsoul (Jan 5, 2012)

I don't know how I did it but was able to enlarge the vid. Still blurry but it looked like when the guy was trying to pull the cat off the dog the dog actually had the cat in his mouth.

Maybe the dog didn't get all cujo but he/she did not back down. Actually was in forward motion after separated, and keeping her position to best face another attack. ASL or WL, doesnt matter as the dog obviously acted as best it could genetically. She certainly didn't tuck tail and hide behind owner.

Also, big cats have a biological advantage. Razor sharp knives at the end of each paw so even if a dog grabs hold,the kicking action the cat does, can kill.

The spastic bounding away action of the cat may have been a little more spastic due to rabies but from all the nature shows I've watched that bounding away gait ( lack f a better term) is what I've always observed in those shows.

I think that dog showed good courage. So did the guy who pulled the cat off, and the guy who stopped the rolling car.

Hope all are ok. 

Just my early morning 2 pennies.


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## Muskeg (Jun 15, 2012)

It's all about surprise. Cats are no joke- even housecats can do some serious damage to a dog before the dog can subdue it. Take out an eye at a minimum. I still have scars on my hand from this stray cat I rescued from my dogs in my own backyard. Cat survived, I had to go through two different courses of antibiotics. Dogs were fine.

I don't think this dog was weak due to genetics, but fighting a bobcat that is rabid and will fight to the death rather than back down (like most wild animals would) is not easy, particularly for a pet with no experience. 

But rabid animals are no joke at all. Even a small rabid animal can be very dangerous. Here's another story from this summer about a rabid raccoon that attacked a woman out running- she ended up drowning it in a puddle. As I said, even when smaller animals really want to get you, due to rabies or something else, they are really dangerous. 

Maine runner drowns rabid raccoon in a puddle after it attacked her


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## Stevenzachsmom (Mar 3, 2008)

Not to be stupid. (And I didn't watch the vid, 'cause I'm scared.) Maybe my question would have been answered.

What happens now? I know the human will need rabies shots. What about the dog? How does that work?


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## Heartandsoul (Jan 5, 2012)

And cats aren't scardy cats. I was walking my boy when he reacted (ok, went nuts) when he saw a cat in the neighbors driveway. The cat ran under the parked car and then another cat came running around the corner all puffed up-side stepping and ready to do battle. It must have been his buddy coming to the rescue. No contact was made but it was the first time I ever saw a cat come to defend another cat.


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## Muskeg (Jun 15, 2012)

That reminds me, remember that hero cat who saved her kid from a dog attack? When cats act in a predatory manner, they are not to be trifled with, and most dogs know it. Unless the dog has past experience in cat fighting, or is in a pack.

As for rabies, depending on state laws the dog might require a rabies booster, but very likely a 10-day quarantine (at home, I'd hope). If the dog wasn't up to date on rabies vaccinations per state law, he could be euthanized. This is why it is so important to keep your rabies vaccinations up to date per state law, because the dog and owner had done absolutely nothing wrong or risky walking on leash in a city park.

Any human exposed to the bobcat will need the full rabies series.


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

Stevenzachsmom said:


> Not to be stupid. (And I didn't watch the vid, 'cause I'm scared.) Maybe my question would have been answered.
> 
> What happens now? I know the human will need rabies shots. What about the dog? How does that work?



A dog attacked by a rabid animal will live or die by its vaccination history. Details will depend on the local law. There's a lot of variation in local law with regard to rabies vaccination and exposure -- even within a state, counties may have differing protocols.

If the pet is unvaxed, an injury by a rabid animal can often be an automatic death sentence for the dog -- but I think people need to think about what this means. It's likely not a peaceful final trip to the family vet, who lovingly, respectfully takes care the pet in the final moments. Rather, it's quite possible that an animal control will take it away on a catch pole in order to not risk contact with the dog. Then it will be euthanized immediately for public health reasons. They probably won't let you be there for your own dog being put down, either -- so the dog likely dies afraid, with strangers who are themselves afraid of this infectious dog. Unlike the family vet, public shelters may not use a sedative before the lethal injection. And if you live in a locale where "heart sticks" are still legal, it may be a death you don't want to contemplate.

If they allow the dog to live, then they have authority to order a rabies hold/quarantine that can last for weeks (or even _months_) at the animal control center, in a padlocked no-human-contact kennel, where food is slid in through a slot. The owner will pay dearly for that too ($25+ per day, plus any fines for having an unvaxed dog). They often clean the kennel by using a pole through bars to move the dog to the far side and slide in a partition, and then the other side can be cleaned without people contacting the dog. The dog will get no walks, no attention, and be treated like a scary monster in a typical city shelter, and probably housed next to psychotic bite-history dogs with court cases (the worst part of the shelter, that adopters never see). A good dog can come out of this kind of extended confinement kind of nuts.

A titered dog could possibly be treated as "unvaccinated," depending on the local law -- or not. It all depends on whether the jurisidiction recommends titering. If it's current on its vaccination though, I believe the usual protocol in a lot of places would just require a booster shot (even though it's current), and then maybe a quarantine at home, with AC stopping by to check in occasionally.

This is why playing games with violating local law on rabies vax requirements is so risky for a dog. Maybe we know our dogs well enough to be sure they won't bite, but how can any of us be sure it won't _be bitten_ (or scratched)?


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## Thecowboysgirl (Nov 30, 2006)

Yeah. I just agonized over whether to re Vax my 10 1/2 year old dog for rabies. she was due this month.

I did wind up doing it. Mainly because she is out and about so much and at trials in other states. I wondered, what if she got into a dog fight, especially in another state? She would never instigate it but f another dog went after her at a trial she might bite back. Then what? In the end I decided to do it just so I knew we were legally straight.

The next time her rabies expires she will be 13 and a half. If she is still with me I doubt she will be doing a ton of stuff like she is now. I expect this to have been the last one she ever gets


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

I had the exact same dilemma with my last oldster. It's a really hard decision!


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## Nigel (Jul 10, 2012)

Read some article on a study using PEP for unvax'd dogs and cats. Don't remember all the details and the sample sizes were small, but the outcomes were promising. The problem would be there can be unknown rabies exposures, especially with cats. Staying current with vax is the best option for sure.


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## Magwart (Jul 8, 2012)

Now there's a squirrel in Prospect Park in Brooklyn suspected of being rabid...
http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york...eeding-prompted-nyc-warning-article-1.3349467


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## Stevenzachsmom (Mar 3, 2008)

Magwart said:


> Now there's a squirrel in Prospect Park in Brooklyn suspected of being rabid...
> Man bitten by squirrel he was feeding prompted city's warning - NY Daily News


That is insane. I have never heard of a squirrel being rabid before.


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## LoboFloppyEars (Oct 15, 2016)

some people said that the dog was biting the cat. I'm not entirely sure about this because I have a feeling that if that dog was biting the cat, he would be dead. I mean these GSDs bite with 238 pounds of force. It could be possible that the cat's biting and clawing and kicking could be reducing that force.


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## newlie (Feb 12, 2013)

If you put the video on full screen, it does look like the GSD has the bobcat in his mouth and the men are trying to pull it away from him. The aftermath of that is when the one guy get bitten/clawed by the cat.


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