Bobcat attacks on 2 children reported in Oglethorpe County
Two children were injured in a bobcat attack in Oglethorpe County late Friday, according to reports from agencies in the county.
An Oglethorpe County sheriff’s deputy responded to a call that came in at 6:35 p.m. in the Melton Road and William McCurley Road area, according to sheriff’s Capt. Mike Tyndell. The neighborhood is south of Colbert and on a Winterville route.
The children, one a toddler, and the other described as a school-age girl, did not have life-threatening injuries, officials said. The attacks occurred at separate homes in the neighborhood while the children were outside playing.
The animal was no longer on scene when deputies and medics arrived and officials reported no sightings of it since Friday.
“We’re going on the presumption of what folks told us that actually saw the animal. We don’t have a video or photographs,” Oglethorpe County Emergency Medical Services Director Jason Lewis said Monday.
The ambulance arrived to treat the toddler, a boy, and once on scene medics learned about injuries to the other child, who had already been taken for treatment, according to Lewis.
“We transported the toddler to St. Mary’s Hospital,” he said.
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Lewis said he did not know what medical treatment the children received, but likely an examination for rabies was provided.
Someone on scene did witness the attack and described the animal as a bobcat, but Lewis said he did not have description of how that attack took place.
Oglethorpe County Fire and Rescue reported on its Facebook page that if "you live in that area, we ask you to be mindful of your surroundings and to please keep a close eye on your children when they are outside. "
The Department of Natural Resources and the Department of Public Health were also notified.
A male bobcat can reach a weight of 40 pounds and occupies a wide variety of habitats, according to the DNR.
This article originally appeared on Athens Banner-Herald: Witnesses reported bobcat attack on 2 kids in Oglethorpe County
