Wild bobcats beat the heat in Calgary backyards

Thanks to the summer heat, some Calgarians have been finding unexpected guests napping in their backyards. In at least two separate incidents, bobcats have entered residents’ yards to lounge in the shade and enjoy the amenities.

Last Sunday, Calgarian Laurel G took to Twitter to share photos of a bobcat sprawled out on her parents’ lawn. Her photos also show the curious cat climbing trees and peeking in her windows—and while this may sound alarming to some, Alberta Fish and Wildlife were alerted and found it unnecessary to relocate the animals.

Sheila Foster, another Calgarian who has found the big cats relaxing in her yard, agrees that they pose no danger. “Absolutely no threat to anyone except those pesky squirrels,” Foster told Global News. A whole family of bobcats has been frequenting Foster’s back yard for two years now, returning to nest under a tree. Foster has posted photos from July 27 showing the mother and her kittens playing among pine cones.

“Every now and again, [the mother] leaves us a rabbit foot or bit of fur so we know she is hunting successfully to feed her little family,” Foster told The Weather Network.

It’s not entirely unusual for bobcats to show up in Calgary, and they are not considered dangerous. Residents are encouraged to leave the animals to themselves—though unobtrusively taking advantage of photo ops is permissible.