They thought she was cute kitty — until her claws came out.
A German animal shelter got an unpleasant surprise when staffers discovered a seemingly abandoned kitten was actually an aggressive European wildcat.
A good Samaritan found the tiny creature on the road and after taking it home, realized it was feisty and refused to eat, so brought it to the Tierheim Bergheim animal shelter, The Dodo reported.
The shelter, located in Bergheim, about 25 miles from Cologne, immediately identified it as a European wildcat, which is the size of a large domestic cat and a protected species native to the area.
Tierheim Bergheim posted a video of the adorable animal suddenly hissing on its Facebook page, along with a caption explaining that it needed to be moved to Retscheider Hof, a wildlife station.
“Staff [at the shelter] immediately recognized that this was not an ordinary domestic kitten,” a spokesperson for the Retscheider Hof wildlife center told the outlet.
“The specific characteristics and behavior indicated that they were dealing with a wildcat. That prompted the animal shelter staff to contact us immediately.”
The wildcat is now at Retscheider Hof with another of its kind, and the pair will remain there until they are old enough to be released into the wild.
“We are currently working hard to give both animals the support and care they need,” the wildlife center spokesperson continued.
“We do our best to make their stay as comfortable as possible. Every progress they make is followed here with great enthusiasm and hope.”
