For the past week, Rick and Stacy Hirst have been keeping a close eye on their newest neighbors. What appears to be a mother bobcat and her two youngsters have been making regular appearances at their 16 Scudder Road property, at various times of the day.

  “I first saw them a week ago,’ said Ms Hirst on Thursday, October 16, “but my husband thinks there was evidence of them in the yard two weeks ago, and has seen one near the pine tree by our driveway.” That tree is close to the road, and in waiting for the school bus one morning, her son heard suspicious rustling coming from beneath the tree. At 6:18 in the morning, it is completely dark.

“He’s not a small child, but I’m not comfortable about that,” Ms Hirst said.

In the four years that the family has lived on Scudder Road, they have been visited by deer, a coyote, and three months ago, a trio of groundhogs “All seeming to come from the same spot, out of the woods,” Ms Hirst said. The bobcats make her a little nervous, though, she admitted, roaming the perimeter of the yard. Oddly enough, the large cats do not seem disturbed by the presence of the Hirst’s golden retriever, and Ms Hirst has spotted one of the bobcats very close to her neighbor’s house — where two more dogs reside.

Bobcats are roughly twice the size of an average housecat, and tend to be secretive, avoiding human contact. Along with rodents and rabbits, they will prey upon poultry, small pigs, lambs, and domestic cats.

“We wanted to give neighborhood a heads up, seeing up and down Scudder [Road] and Cobblestone [Lane] are various missing pets,” she told The Newtown Bee, referring to the number of handmade posters seeking information about missing pets tacked to poles and trees in the neighborhood.

Ideally, the Hirsts would like to see the bobcats humanely trapped and relocated. In contacting the local authorities and the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP), though, that does not seem to be an option.

In speaking with the Newtown Police Department, Ms Hirst was told the town does not trap wild animals, and suggested she call DEEP.

Chris Vann, nuisance wildlife biologist with DEEP, responded via e-mail to Ms Hirst that she could request in writing a special permit the DEEP may consider issuing “to a professional licensed Nuisance Wildlife Control Operator (NWCO), hired by the landowner, to trap and destroy bobcats that threaten or attack supervised pets, livestock/poultry, or threaten public health and safety.” Ms Hirst understood that the cost to the landowner could run around $2,000 cost to have the animals trapped and removed.

It is true, said Carolee Mason, Newtown’s Animal Control Officer, that the town does not trap wild animals. “We’d have to fill a whole zoo, if we started doing that.”

She understands that people are concerned about their children and small pets having encounters with wildlife, but it is important for residents to understand the animals’ points of view, as well.

As habitats are destroyed and housing takes over wooded areas, animals are forced to take up residence close to people’s homes. “The animals,” pointed out Ms Mason, “are looking at this like ‘This is my space. What are people doing here?’ And of course, people are feeling that way about the animals.” Choosing to live in Newtown does mean that people should expect, at some point, to encounter wild animals.

Patience and common sense are generally the best way to deal with what, usually, are brief meetings up. “[The bobcats] will eventually move. They don’t stay there,” Ms Mason said.

What she knows about bobcats is that each bobcat has a main den, where a female bobcat may choose to raise her kittens, as well as auxiliary dens for shelter. Bobcat kittens are born in the early spring, and around five months of age, the mother begins to teach them to hunt.

“Scudder Road is a very rocky area, and bobcats like a rocky area for a den,” Ms Mason said. “A rocky area also is a good place for squirrels, chipmunks, and rabbits, so Scudder Road area is a good place for something like a bobcat or coyote to find food,” she said.

By the time the kittens reach eight months or so of age, “They are evicted from the mother’s den,” said Ms Mason. The Scudder Road bobcat family is probably drawing close to that time, which is why she suspects they will not continue to linger there.

Defenders of Wildlife website notes that each bobcat has a territory, from about 5 square miles for females, to about 30 square miles for males. Bobcats will range about one to four miles daily.

“I understand their concerns. I would suggest that when they go out, they make a lot of noise. Bobcats are not looking to attack people,” Ms Mason said.

That said, police destroyed a bobcat this past Labor Day weekend after it terrorized people and dogs in the towns of Bozrah and Lebanon in Connecticut. The animal tested positive for rabies, but according to information on the DEEP website, bobcats “rarely contract the mid-Atlantic strain of rabies,” making this an extremely unusual occurrence. “[Bobcats] rarely cause conflict with human activities,” according to DEEP.

Addressing the Hirsts concerns over safety of waiting for the bus or being in their yard, Mr Vann offered suggestions for minimizing any interactions that could occur.

“At this time I recommend that you frighten these animals whenever they appear, to disperse them from the area. Often loud noise is recommended, to include such things as banging pots and pans, air horn, ‘coyote’ shaker (can filled with pennies), shouting, etc. Further control through hazing by throwing objects, spraying with water, or playing a radio outside near possible denning or loafing area may also alter their habits. Your son may want to carry a powerful flashlight and whistle to use if he encounters these bobcats while walking to the bus stop. Removing or disturbing any habitat these bobcats may be using for loafing or denning, and eliminating any food attraction like bird feeders that attract rodents, their primary food source, should also encourage them to relocate to a safer area,” he said in the e-mail.

“Any bobcat posing an immediate threat to people should be reported to the local police or DEEP EnCon Police at (860) 424-3333,” added Mr Vann.

Residents should feel free to call the Animal Control Department at 203-426-6900 or the main number of the Newtown Police, 203-426-5841, anytime there is a bobcat present, said Ms Mason. “We can’t trap the animals, but at least we can make them feel a little safer,” she said.

In the meantime, with the school bus arriving in the dark these mornings, Mr Hirst has decided to drive their son to the top of the driveway until they feel the situation is resolved.