22-Pound Cat Attacks! Family Forced to Barricade Themselves in Bedroom

by Kerri Fivecoat-Campbell



A 911 dispatcher in Portland, Oregon had to ask a supervisor if they should send police out on the most unusual call. A man was reporting that his family had barricaded themselves in their bedroom to hide from the family cat, which had gone berserk and was attacking the family, he said.

The cat can be heard on the 911 tape howling and hissing.

The ruckus began when the Himalayan cat named Lux, scratched the 7-month old baby of the family.

Lee Palmer, the baby’s father, told The Oregonian, “I kicked the cat in the rear, and it has gone over the edge. He's trying to attack us -- he's very hostile. He's at our door; he's charging us."

When police arrived, Lux ran into the kitchen and got on top of the refrigerator. Police snared the 4-year old, 22-pound kitty with a dog snare and placed him into a crate.

“The cat remained behind bars in the custody of the family and officers cleared the scene and continued to fight crime elsewhere in the city," Portland police told CBS News in a release.

The Associated Press later reported that the baby pulled the cat's tail, which prompted Lux to scratch the baby. The family said they are not getting rid of the cat, but will seek help.

It's rare that a cat will attack unprovoked and Dr. Stephen Zawistowski, science advisor for the ASPCA, said that there are various reasons a cat might become aggressive.

"Where a cat came from and how well socialized it was as a kitten are factors that often influence a cat's behavior. Sometimes cats will show redirected aggression. This is especially true if there are other cats outside in the neighborhood. The indoor cat gets very anxious and aroused and may attack anyone, anything in the vicinity. This might also happen if other activities have aroused the cat such as rough play or some type of commotion in the house. For some cats, this might be a baby screaming and crying, and the parent's reaction to the baby.”

People must remember that pets are living, breathing animals that feel pain. Babies should never be left alone with pets, especially if they are too young to know not to hurt an animal.

Yelling, screaming and kicking the cat might escalate the situation, Zawistowski explained. “If a cat becomes aggressive or hostile, one option is to throw a blanket or towel over the cat. You can bundle up the cat and hold it until it calms, while staying safe from claws and teeth."

Editor’s Note: Photo of Lux from the CBS NewsFacebook page.

 

I would have maybe been surprised by this a few years ago, but I was actually attacked by our loving house cat. The sweetest, most adorable cat that we'd ever had and we had for a couple years before the attack happened. I believe it was because she was in heat and when we got her fixed, we never had an issue again. She just flipped out and I was backed into repeated corners as she came at me again.

The last line concerns me. While throwing a blanket over a cat might get the cat to stop attacking, I wouldn't recommend bundling it up at that point. If it's freaking out, covering its eyes and holding it close might freak it out even more.

 

Well, yeah, not surprised either, cats when they are in heat tend to act in a very strange way... they don't behave in the way they usually do when they're not in heat. That's why they say you need to neuter them before the first time they get in heat, you are lucky the cat is normal after that... because as I said the neutering should take place before the first time they experience that. It works best that way.