Bobcats take up residency under deck of Pflugerville home

PFLUGERVILLE, Texas - A family in Pflugerville was surprised by new neighbors that moved in.

Video taken by the homeowner showed a bobcat looking a little too comfortable while lounging on the back deck.

"Their address kind of threw me off because we're in suburbia, there are homes everywhere," said Tony Sosa, a technician for A to Z Pest Control, who was called in to help.

Meme Styles, who lives at the home and has a toddler, said her neighbor first spotted one hanging around about a week ago.

"And then my husband came out, had his morning coffee, and said, 'You know, there's a mama bobcat and baby bobcats playing on the playground,’" said Styles. "We've literally been inside the house not letting the baby come out and play just because of the danger."

It appeared the mother and her cubs were living underneath their deck. 

"We've had a hundred-degree weather and no rain. We have a lake back here," said Sosa, referring to nearby Lake Pflugerville. "And there are a lot of rabbits, so that's a big part of why I think she was here, there's a food source, water source and den."

They were able to block an opening on the side of the deck and leave a small hole for the bobcats to venture out into a cage trip. They were later released on a property outside of town. 

"What was really important for me is that there was a conscious, intentional way of trapping them and making sure that they are safe," said Styles. "At the end of the day, we are building all of these beautiful homes on what is essentially the land of these animals."

Sosa said in his 13 years of working in the pest control industry, this is only the second bobcat interaction he has had in Central Texas. The first bobcat he captured in a trap that was set for a different animal.

According to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, bobcats are found throughout Texas, but typically avoid people. They serve as important predators in urban areas by keeping other wildlife populations, like rodents, in check, according to a spokesperson for TPWD. 

Below are recommendations from TPWD regarding bobcats:

• Never intentionally feed wildlife!  Feeding bobcats can result in habituation and undesirable behaviors.
• Don’t feed wildlife accidentally. Bobcats will exploit any potential source of food.  Because bobcats frequently eat rodents, anything that attracts rodents can also attract bobcats. The following actions can prevent bobcats from being attracted to your yard: Keep pet food indoors Sweep up fallen seed under bird feeders, or remove bird feeders completely Pick up fallen fruit from trees Remove firewood or brush piles  Secure trash
• Keep pet food indoors
• Sweep up fallen seed under bird feeders, or remove bird feeders completely
• Pick up fallen fruit from trees
• Remove firewood or brush piles 
• Secure trash
• To keep pets safe, it is imperative that pet owners do not allow their pets to roam freely. Pets that roam freely face many threats and may wind up missing, injured, sick, or killed. Pets are often injured or killed by cars or other domestic animals.  Lastly, they may encounter a hungry wild animal that doesn’t discern a domestic pet from prey. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department joins other organizations in recommending that pets are kept indoors or on a leash where they are safest.
• Do not panic if you see a bobcat. As mentioned before, they occur in our cities. A sighting of a bobcat acting appropriately and non-aggressively does not require a response.
• If a bobcat frequents an area, show them that they are not welcome. "Hazing" a bobcat, or showing it signs of aggression each time it is seen, will usually discourage its presence and helps to re-establish its fear of humans. Bobcats respond to human actions, and negative behavior can often be corrected. Examples of hazing include: Making loud noises such as yelling, clapping, blowing a whistle, hitting noisy objects together, or using an air horn Waving hands, stomping feet, or jumping Spraying water Throwing small objects at the animal with the intent to hit
• Making loud noises such as yelling, clapping, blowing a whistle, hitting noisy objects together, or using an air horn
• Waving hands, stomping feet, or jumping
• Spraying water
• Throwing small objects at the animal with the intent to hit