A scary viral video that was put on Twitter captured a rabid bobcat attacking a woman in her own driveway in Burgaw, North Carolina.
Kristi and Happy Wade said they were preparing to take their cat, Caroline, to the veterinarian at 7:20 a.m. April 9.
The video that was shared earlier this week showed the two preparing to leave their home and get inside their SUB in their driveway before the deadly feline darted into view.
This was a wild 46 seconds pic.twitter.com/jIHQg0G4qU
— Sada (@Evi3Zamora) April 15, 2021
“I heard a horrible growl, and I thought, that’s a very unhappy sounding kitty cat,” Kristi said. “The bobcat showed its face, went around the front fender of the car that was next to me, and I knew immediately what it was, I knew it was a bobcat, so I took off running and it followed me.”
The woman's screams can be heard in the video as the wild animal claws gripped into Krist Wade’s back. The cat can be seen attempting to climb up her back to most likely bite into her neck. Happy was able to step in and save his wife’s life before any of that could happen. He pulled the bobcat off of her body and ran across his yard, holding the writhing animal in his outstretched arms.
"Oh my god, it's a bobcat! Oh my god!" he screams, tossing the animal several feet across his lawn. Happy was able to grab his handgun before the 46-second video ended. He eventually shot the bobcat once before law enforcement arrived and killed the feral feline. The bobcat "tested positive for rabies” after local law enforcement sent bloodwork to a state lab in Raleigh.
Kristi Wade had over 20 puncture wounds and was bitten by the deadly feline three times. Both she and Happy have since undergone intensive treatment for rabies which caused each of them to receive more than 30 shots each.
“Some people have criticized me because I threw the cat. Well, it’s not a nice kitty, it’s got rabies, it’s out of its mind, it’s in a lot of pain,” Happy said. “My wife and I love animals, and I didn’t take it lightly that I was shooting this bobcat. To be honest with you, I also wanted to make sure we got the medical care we needed. To do that you have to put the animal down.”
Kristi said that she was grateful for her husband's actions and how he saved her life from the feline.
“One person asked me, ‘Did it surprise you the way your husband acted?’ and I said, 'no, it did not,'” Kristi said. “He’s always been my hero. I’ve always known how much he loves me, and he would do anything to protect me.”
“We just want people to understand this was a freak incident,” Kristi said. “We want people to make sure they get their animals vaccinated and that they realize this was not meant to be cruel in any way. How would you react if a wild rabid bobcat attacked you in your driveway? We had to think fast.”
