Distressed 7-Year-Old Pleads For Help In Neighbor’s Door Cam After Meeting Wild Bobcat

Mar 11, 2021

Running into wild animals can be scary for anyone, but when you're a young child seeing one on your own can be truly petrifying. Thankfully not all wild animals are a danger to humans, but to a young child, the difference between a dangerous animal and one that isn't harmful is not always clear. Unfortunately, in 2020, a 7-year-old girl named Taylor from Scottsdale, Arizona had a run-in with a wild animal and assumed the worst.

After being outside on her bike, Taylor ran into a wild bobcat, and instantly fear set in. The little girl panicked and immediately set off in the other direction. The only problem was that she was too far from her home to simply go back there. What she did instead was incredibly smart for a young child of her age — she ran to the nearest home that she recognized and began to knock on the front door. However, to Taylor's panic, the family wasn't home. Thankfully though, they were able to communicate with her through their video doorbell system they have installed and they managed to keep her calm, as they were on their way home. Minutes later their car pulled into their driveway and Taylor was finally safe.

The footage of the incident was released by the company that manufactures the security system and although it's worrying to see such a young child fearing for her life, it does show just how brave and smart her actions were. Thankfully, bobcats aren't a real danger to humans anyway, but young Taylor didn't know that when she encountered one in real life.

For any young child, there are moments in life that appear much more threatening than they actually are. Being separated from one's parents on the first day of school might be one, or experiencing something new for the first time. This includes coming across new animals that perhaps they didn't know existed, for example, a wild animal at a zoo, or even a strange animal on the street. 

Unfortunately, one 7-year-old girl from Scottsdale, Arizona named Taylor, whose last name is unknown, felt this fear when she came across a wild bobcat on the street while she was on her own. It all happened one afternoon when Taylor went out on her bike. While cycling around her neighborhood, she went a little further than she usually did and stopped right in her tracks when she saw a wild bobcat in front of her on the street. She had never been in such a situation before and understandably, panic set in.

Although fearful of how the wild animal would act, Taylor thought quickly about what to do next. Her mom was far behind her and she was all alone, so she left her bike and ran back away from the bobcat as fast as she could. Luckily, she recognized a nearby house where her friend, whose name is Lauren, lived. What happened next was actually captured on Lauren's family's video security system. Taylor approaches the front door while constantly looking behind her to check if the bobcat had followed her. She then knocks frantically on the door.

To her dismay, nobody appeared to be home. Still wearing her bike helmet, Taylor can be seen knocking and ringing the doorbell, while looking behind her for the wild cat. Since the doorbell video on the security system can also record sound, Taylor can be heard speaking to the intercom as she pleads, "Please, there's a bobcat, is there anyone home?"

Since many similar security systems are connected to the owner's smartphone, thankfully for Taylor, her friend Lauren and her mom Nicole answered her call for help. Lauren told Taylor: "I'm on my way home right now. I'll be out soon. Okay." Meanwhile, Taylor, appearing somewhat comforted that someone has answered, is still pleading for them to open the door as she's scared. Nicole can be heard telling Lauren, "Okay, tell her we're going to be home in one minute."

Taylor then explains that she really wants to come inside as she doesn't know where her mom is, that she might have been back home already when Taylor saw the bobcat. By this point, Taylor is saying "I want my mommy," which is completely understandable. Lauren and Nicole do a good job of calming Taylor, telling her to stay put and that they are one minute from their home. Nicole tells Lauren to stay on the line to Taylor and says loudly enough for the scared girl to hear:   

"As soon as I get you in my house safe. I will call your mom. I'm almost there, I'm right by the park. I'm almost there."

Nicole continues to calm Taylor by telling her that they are "literally turning the corner, right at Jason's," before seconds later their car appears to pull into the driveway. Finally, Taylor can relax now that help has arrived.

It's heartbreaking to witness Taylor go through such a distressing incident on her own, even if we know everything is fine in the end. What the video demonstrates is not only how smart Taylor is for how she reacted to such a scary situation, but it is also a masterclass in how to keep someone calm in an emergency situation, even when you aren't necessarily there to help them immediately. It also shows how useful a video doorbell system can be. The situation even brought about a positive change for Taylor and her family, as her mom Kristin bought the same security system for their own home the day after the incident happened.

Although it was an extremely distressing situation for Taylor, bobcats aren't in fact dangerous to humans, however, they can get aggressive if they're infected with rabies. But considering their size — they can be as big as 49 inches in length — it's no surprise Taylor got scared and ran away. And it's good that she did because while this bobcat might not be a danger, another animal might have been.

We're glad that the story ended fine and that Taylor was safe in the end, but this story shows that you never know what wild animals might be out there in your neighborhood and it's important to always be on the lookout.

What would you have done if you were Taylor? Has anything similar ever happened to you or someone you know? Pass this story on to warn others of the potential dangers that might befall someone, even in their own neighborhood.