Reports of a bobcat sighting in South Surrey last week raised some concerns among residents in the neighbourhoods of Morgan Creek and Grandview Heights.
But while an official with the B.C. Conservation Officer Service couldn’t confirm that one of the cats had been around, he did say they are nothing to be worried about.
“If there is (a bobcat in the area), it’s no danger to people,” said Bob Butcher, acting sergeant for the Chilliwack/Surrey zone.
“If your concern is children, I wouldn’t worry about it at all. Even pets… I can’t even think of the last time we got a call where bobcats did attack a pet.”
According to one local Block Watch group, one of the cats was seen in the Morgan Creek neighbourhood last Thursday (Jan. 12) morning.
It may not have been the animal’s first venture into the area, however.
Lina Gomes, a Grandview Heights resident, said her husband noticed a large cat’s footprints in the snow of their backyard in early January, in the 16600-block of 28 Avenue.
“Looks like it came through the cedar edge and walked all around the backyard and then it exited through the cedars again,” Gomes told Peace Arch News by email Tuesday.
“Would never have noticed if there had been no snow… maybe it’s been there before.”
Butcher said bobcats – roughly twice the size of the average house cat, with large paws, tufted ears and a short tail – may wander into more populated areas during the long winters, looking for mice or birds to prey on, or for a warm place to hunker down. While they may target house cats or very small dogs, such incidents are rare, he said.
He noted the majority of such reports either remain unconfirmed or the animal in question is found to be a manx or large tabby.
At least two South Surrey elementary principals said they heard “rumblings” of a bobcat sighting last week.
Pacific Heights Elementary principal Sundeep Chohan said she heard from one parent regarding a sighting “down the street” from the 17148 26 Ave. school.
It did not prompt safety measures at the school, she said Tuesday.
Surrey School District spokesman Doug Strachan said by email that while district staff are aware of similar reports and postings about possible bobcat tracks near the Brookswood area of Langley, “we’ve not heard reports of a bobcat being seen, nor of tracks much west of that.”
Butcher said there is no need to report such sightings to the conservation office, unless the cat appears to be weak or unwell.
Concerns regarding wildlife may be reported to 1-877-952-7277.