Escaped exotic cat on the loose in Metairie

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Jefferson Parish animal shelter officers are on the lookout for an escaped exotic cat that’s been prowling around a Metairie backyard and injured a pet chicken.

Officials suspect the animal is an African serval cat based on photos and video posted on social media, according to animal shelter Director Robin Beaulieu.

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“We’re contacting and alerting neighbors so they can keep their pets indoors,” Beaulieu said. “We’re going to make every effort to get this animal captured."

Kaila Miller Cureau discovered the cat with her chicken, Rainbow, in its mouth outside her York Street home around 4 a.m. Monday (Nov. 5).

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“He charged at me,” said Cureau, who dashed back inside her home and tried to call 911 for help.

Call takers, who thought the cat was a wild animal like a bobcat, referred her to the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, according to Capt. Jason Rivarde, spokesman for the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office. Wildlife and Fisheries director her to a trapper, who set up a cage on Monday.

But the wily cat avoided the trapper’s cage Monday night while continuing to terrorize Cureau’s other chickens. When she left for work Tuesday morning, Cureau said the cat was up in a neighboring tree.

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