Camp counselor treated for rabies after wild bobcat attack while he slept

06 July 2023 , 17:23

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Rescuers venture by boat to Selden Neck Island, where a camp counselor was attacked by a rabid bobcat (Image: Deep River Fire Department/Facebook)

A rabid bobcat ambushed a group of campers sleeping at a state park in Connecticut, biting one counselor who was sleeping peacefully in their hammock.

The animal had been on a rampage — and there were nine children sleeping nearby, right in the path of danger.

As if that wasn't problem enough, the bobcat tested positive for rabies, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Conservation told kake.com.

One bite from the feline could pave the way for infection, and infection almost always leads to death in rabies cases.

The counselor and two of his colleagues raced into action, hunting down the animal and killing it, all the while ensuring it never got near the children.

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Bobcats aren't usually violent — but they can be if they're rabid (Getty Images)

But time was running out — the initial counselor had been bitten by the rabid beast, and he needed immediate medical treatment.

First responders could only reach the campsite, which was located on Selden Neck Island State Park in Lyme, Connecticut, via boat.

They ferried across the water, grabbed all the campers and then took the counselors to local hospitals for assessment and treatment.

The counselor who was bitten was likely given the first dose of the rabies vaccine as well as some antibodies, according to Dr. Cynthia Tucker, an emergency doctor with the Lawrence & Memorial Hospital Emergency Department.

The counselors and children were evacuated via boat (Deep River Fire Department/Facebook)

She believes they started treating him just in time to save him.

The 12 campers had been on the island as part of a Connecticut Department of Children and Families' Wilderness School outdoor program for troubled youth.

The program is designed for "prevention, intervention and transition," said DCF Deputy Director Michael Williams.

The participants had been camping out in an authorised area, he said, when the attack happened on Friday at around 2am.

Tucker said bobcat attacks aren't very common — they're not generally inclined to attack people, and the fact that this one did indicated that there could be something wrong with it.

The felines are usually "secretive" and run away from humans and other animals, she said.

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Anyone who is bitten by an animal, especially if the animal could have rabies, should go to a doctor for treatment immediately, she said.

Jeremiah Hassel