JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. — Do bobcats chase laser pointers? Deputies with the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office tested that theory last week when they responded to a call for an animal inside a home.
On Thursday evening, Amy Shelly heard a loud noise in her home on Summit Ash in the Ken Caryl area and went to investigate. She said she had left the door unlatched because her cat Meatball was outside, and thought her cats had knocked something over.
"I went downstairs and saw a bobcat at the bottom of the stairs trying to get out," she said.
She tried to get past the bobcat to let it outside, but the animal was "pretty angry." She called 911 to get the animal removed from her home. When deputies arrived, they found the bobcat hiding behind the TV.
One deputy thought that bobcats, like house cats, might chase laser pointers. The deputy used the laser on his Taser to try and coax the large cat out, according to the sheriff's office.
"Here, little kitty kitty," said the deputy in body camera footage released by the sheriff's office.
The bobcat appeared unimpressed with the high-tech lure and remained in its hideout.
"It was pretty funny," Shelly said. "I don't think any of us knew what to do."
The bobcat didn't budge. Eventually, the deputies left. Shelly said she went upstairs and left the doors open, and the bobcat left on its own about four hours later.
Unimpressed Bobcat Ignores Lasers, Strolls Out of Ken Caryl Home on Its Own TermsCats and dogs chase laser pointers, but this bobcat was not impressed. When it wandered into a Ken Caryl home and cozied up behind the TV, our deputies thought outside the box—trying their TASER’s… pic.twitter.com/JcpuV2N0tY
— Jeffco Sheriff (@jeffcosheriffco) May 28, 2025
Shelly said she's no stranger to wildlife in her neighborhood in Jefferson County, on the edge of the foothills. She's had a bear in her garage and birds in her house.
"You get very relaxed in your daily life, and you leave your doors open for the fresh air or for your pets to come in and out, and you can't do that," she said. "There are bears, there are mountain lions, there are bobcats, there are coyotes, and they are attracted to food."
Her advice: Close and latch the doors, keep the pets inside.