It turns out that a giant feline generating frantic calls to Animal Services in San Jose is nothing but an overgrown housecat.
Spock, a 27-year-old Maine Coon, has been mistaken for everything from a lynx to a bobcat, according his owner Colleen Pizarev. The misidentification is due to his enormous size: At 31/2 years old, the cat weighs a whopping 27 pounds and consumes about a pound of fish a day.
The situation would be purely laughable, were it not for all the terrified neighbors who have caught him staring at them through the windows.
“One person chastised me for having a wild animal in the house, saying that they thought it was a bobcat,” said Pizarev. Another was concerned that the “lynx” would eat her small dog.
Evidently, the result has been multiple calls to animal control. On top of that, Pizarev has been forced to keep Spock inside for his own safety—no easy feat, considering his superkitty strength.
“It’s a lot like having a toddler in the house,” Pizarev said. “We have to Spock-proof the house.”
In addition to their unique vocalizations, Maine Coons are notorious for their large size. A typical male will reach 40 inches in length and 10 to 16 inches in height, with an average weight of 15 to 25 pounds. Some can get much larger.
If only more San Jose residents knew that.
Read more about San Jose’s giant housecat here.
Image Credit: Flickr User s_fox, https://flic.kr/p/xDQed via (CC BY-SA 2.0)