Coby Reid was inspecting a stretch of train tracks in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains when he came across a small animal nearly blending in with his surroundings.
A young bobcat was sitting in the center of the tracks, seemingly unconcerned that he was holding up traffic. “The cat was reposed on his haunches with one arm leaned casually over the rail, as though he were reclining in an armchair,” Reid told The Dodo.
The cat looked relaxed but, as Reid moved closer, he realized that the animal was in grave danger. Reid and his partner climbed out of their truck and noticed that the cat couldn’t move because he was frozen to the metal rail.
Reid realized they had to get the wild animal to safety before the train arrived, so he tried to warm him up by covering him with his jacket.
Wearing clothing didn’t appear to make the bobcat happy.
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“We paused for a moment to consider the issue before calling our office and requesting that someone send us a bucket of hot water to assist us in removing the unlucky cat from the rail,” Reid explained. “Our boss came a short time later, water in hand and eager to help.”
The first pail of water freed one of the cat’s legs — and made him increasingly mad. “With a bit of coaxing and more warm water, the cat was free,” Reid said. “But to our surprise, he did not want to leave without a fight.”
Finally, Reid and the other inspectors were able to move the bobcat from the tracks just in time.
“The bobcat ensured that we completed our inspections only 30 minutes shy of the next train’s passing,” Reid said. “The very train that would have ended our small friend’s life had we not been conducting an inspection that morning.”
While the bobcat didn’t seem too grateful for the assist, Reid was happy that he was there to give the little guy a second chance at life.
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