DNA shows raccoon, not bobcat, attacked woman
LAUDERHILL — Newly released DNA test results reveal a raccoon — not a bobcat — is to blame for the ferocious attack on a Lauderhill woman, who suffered bites to her face, leg and hand. It also ripped off the tip of her finger.
Eslyn Fray, 85, and her husband told officials they thought it was a bobcat that attacked them during their morning walk Oct. 4. But the animal vanished, leaving it unclear for days precisely what kind of creature it was. Wildlife officials then arranged for hair found at the scene to be tested, ultimately showing the attacker was a raccoon.
Wildlife experts say it’s common for raccoons to attack if they feel threatened or are protecting their young.
Paul Zambrano, the owner of Bandit Wildlife Management, which traps wildlife from Monroe to Palm Beach counties, said the attacking raccoon likely falls in two categories: “In my experience, raccoons can be kind of territorial. It might have been a female and had babies nearby.” Or it could be a raccoon who was sick. “Typically, they are not going to just attack you for no reason. It could be a territorial issue but it’s not normal raccoon behavior to attack for no reason or without being provoked.
“Maybe the people scared it and it thought it had to defend itself.”
A raccoon mom defending her young is plausible, he said, because raccoons can breed year-round in Florida because of the temperatures. They have “multiple litters throughout the year.”
It may never be known whether the raccoon in the Oct. 4 attack had rabies. It was never found to be tested. But for precaution, Eslyn Fray has been treated for rabies with five injections, her family said Friday.
Carol Lyn Parrish, spokeswoman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Commission’s south region, said the final report of the DNA test of hair samples are pending from the University of Florida’s Veterinary Forensic Program in Gainesville. But they received word Thursday and “the results confirm this species as raccoon,” she said.
Eslyn Fray and her husband, Rupert Fray, are now out of the hospital and recovering. Eslyn Fray remains at a rehabilitation center while her husband is back home.
The animal attack happened at The Greens of Inverarry apartments, where the couple live. As the pair approached the
east side of the parking lot, some kind of animal jumped out from behind a vehicle and attacked Eslyn Fray. Rupert Fray described the animal as a black or gray large cat that was larger than a typical domesticated house cat.
When emergency workers arrived, Eslyn Fray was on the ground bleeding from several places from her body, according to a Lauderhill police report. The animal first bit her leg, which caused her to fall to the ground, bit her right hand, and in its last act before running away, bit her in the face above her left eye.
Rupert Fray, 71, said he suffered a fractured hip after
falling trying to protect his wife.
Rupert Fray’s brother, Howard Fray, said Eslyn was treated for rabies at shots that could cost thousands of dollars each. Her finger is still bandaged and he said the couple will keep “fighting on.”
Raccoons are commonly attracted to human areas by garbage, pet food, birdseed and gardens. Once accustomed to being fed, raccoons lose their natural fear of humans and move closer to food sources, Parrish said.
Wildlife officials urge the public to never feed raccoons. It’s illegal to intentionally feed them.