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Bobcat that survived 50-mile trip in car grill released to the wild

Posted at 10:31 PM, Mar 02, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-02 22:32:42-05

NEW KENT COUNTY, Va. -- The bobcat that was hit by a car on Thanksgiving Day and survived a 50-mile "miracle" trip from Gloucester County to Richmond stuck in car grill has been released back into the wild.

The Wildlife Center of Virginia says the bobcat was taken to a secret location in New Kent County, due to the dangerous nature of this species, and released around 3 p.m. Friday.

“The bobcat quickly ran off down a dirt trail into the woods,” officials posted the Wildlife Center website.

The bobcat's wild ride began Thanksgiving morning after it ran out onto the road and in front of a woman driving from Gloucester to Richmond. The woman discovered the bobcat lodged in the grill of her Prius after she parked at VCU.

The bobcat suffered a jaw fracture, bruised lungs and a large laceration on its back.

She has since fully recovered from her injuries in the crash.

The Rescue: 'We’ve never done anything like this'  

Richmond Animal Care and Control Director Christie Peters and another animal control worker experienced a Thanksgiving "miracle" after a rescuing a bobcat trapped in the grill of a car.

Peters said that a woman driving to work that morning knew that she had hit something in Gloucester County.

However, it was not until she parked at VCU in Richmond that she discovered a bobcat lodged in the grill of her Prius had survived the 50-mile, nearly hour-long journey to the city.

RACC Director Christie Peters, her father and RACC Officer Barbara Jones saved a bobcat from the grill of a Prius on Thanksgiving morning.

RACC Director Christie Peters, her father and RACC Officer Barbara Jones saved a bobcat from the grill of a Prius on Thanksgiving morning.

Peters said she had been up since 6:30 a.m. preparing for hosting Thanksgiving when she got a text message from RACC Officer Barbara Jones.

“Officer Jones sent me a text message at 8:06. And the text was, ‘I’m on a call with a bobcat stuck in the grill of a car – and he’s still alive.’"

Peters said the text contained the "crazy eyes" emoji along with the question, “What do I do?”

“We’ve never done anything like this,” Peters explained. "I didn’t want to make anybody else get out of bed on Thanksgiving morning, so I went with my dad.”

Peters said she changed out of her pajamas, grabbed a coat and then went to pick up supplies from the shelter.

Those supplies included a stick pole that would allow her to safely administer a sedative to tranquillize the animal.

“We got on scene and it really was true. It’s really a bobcat stuck in the front of a Prius grill,” Peters said. "When we walked by, he hissed at us, so he’s alive and may be OK, which was so crazy since she drove from Gloucester to VCU.”

Richmond Animal Care and Control

Richmond Animal Care and Control

Peters then sedated the animal, which had been wedged into the grill, and within four minutes the big cat was “pretty much out.”

That is when the bobcat dropped lower and they realized the only think holding the animal in place was one wire and a piece of  plastic under his ribcage.

Peters said the trio loosened and moved the plastic components and pulled the wire before the bobcat dropped under the vehicle.

Peters carries the bobcat to a cage in the van.

Peters carries the bobcat to a cage in the van.

Officer Jones used a catch pole around the animal’s neck as a precaution while Peters carried him to their van.

“I’ve only ever seen one once in real life like running across a road somewhere,” Peters said. “We just don’t ever get a chance to be so close to such beautiful, wild creatures and it was just wonderful to know that he made it through such a weird, crazy situation.”

The bobcat resting at The Wildlife Center of Virginia in Waynesboro.

The bobcat resting at The Wildlife Center of Virginia in Waynesboro.

Jones transported to the animal to the Wildlife Center of Virginia in Waynesboro.

“They were incredibly wonderful and helpful,” Peters said. "It’s perfect that it was Thanksgiving… because it was just a miracle and we’re so grateful that it ended the way that it did.”

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