Exotic serval cat captured after chicken attack in Utah
Published in Cats & Dogs News
(UPI) An exotic cat on the prowl in Utah was captured one day after a resident rescued her pet chicken from the animal's mouth.
Jefferson Parish Animal Control Director Robin Beaulieu-Lee said the animal was misidentified as a bobcat by the initial 911 caller, but officials later discovered it was a domesticated African serval cat.
Kaila Cureau first spotted the cat Monday morning, when she heard her pet chicken, Rainbow Dash, screeching in the back yard.
"I was running to the backyard expecting a cat, and this thing stands up and it looks like a jaguar," Cureau told WVUE-TV.
Cureau was able to get Rainbow Dash to the Avian & Exotic Animal Hospital in Metairie, where the pet underwent two surgeries and is expected to make a full recovery.
Animal Control said the serval was found Tuesday hiding in a tree on Cureau's property.
"They were able to get this particular animal in a safe manner without using any drugs and et cetera and no injury and harm," Beaulieu-Lee said.
An investigation has been opened to determine whether the exotic pet's owner was keeping the cat illegally. It was treated for a paw injury and is being kept at the Audubon Species Survival Center.
Copyright 2018 by United Press International
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