SARATOGA, CA — Four orphaned bobcat kittens are being cared for at the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA's Wildlife Care Center, marking the first time the organization has rehabilitated bobcats.
The kittens arrived from different parts of California after each lost its mother under separate circumstances. One was found alone in Concord after crying for several days, another was rescued in Carmel while underweight and infested with parasites, and two more came from Kern County after their mother died in a fall, according to the Peninsula Humane Society.
The bobcats have completed disease quarantines and are now living in remote enclosures at the organization's 169-acre wildlife center in Saratoga, where staff are limiting human interaction while helping them develop the skills they'll need to survive in the wild.
"The bobcats will remain in our care for an extended period, as young bobcats are not fully independent until approximately 8–10 months of age," said Colleen Crowley, Peninsula Humane Society communications manager. "Our goal is to ensure they maintain a healthy fear of humans and develop hunting, climbing, and survival skills necessary to thrive in the wild before we release them sometime after October."
The Peninsula Humane Society rescues and rehabilitates injured and orphaned wildlife from San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, with the goal of returning animals to their natural habitats whenever possible.
Anyone who finds an injured, sick or orphaned wild animal can contact the Peninsula Humane Society's Wildlife Care Center at 650-340-7022.
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