Feral cat holds Rockland County, N.Y., neighborhood captive

PEARL RIVER, N.Y. -- Neighbors in Rockland County on edge, all because of a cat.

The wild feline has already attacked at least two people and is still roaming the area.

Joe Soldano didn't think he would spend part of his Fourth of July fighting off a feral cat, but as Soldano was cleaning up in his back yard, the black cat approached.

"All the sudden the thing leaped at me and started hissing, whatever," he said. "So I kicked him, you know, and went down and he came running right back at me. I thought he was going to run away."

He said even after kicking the cat a second time, it just kept coming back. Soldano ran inside and took a picture when the animal planted itself outside of the door and refused to leave.

"He wouldn't go away," he said. "I was hitting the door, and every time I opened it, he was like he wanted to attack again. So finally I went upstairs to the bathroom window, and I threw some cold water down at it, and he's been gone since."

Animal Control and police officers are now patrolling the area, a quiet residential neighborhood where the aggressive and possibly rabid animal roams free.

There have been other sightings in Pearl River, and at least one other attack.

That homeowner is undergoing a series of rabies shots, and police put out a reverse 911 call reminding residents not to come in contact with the cat if spotted.

There haven't been any sightings in the last few days, and Animal Control officers say it is possible the cat succumbed to the illness if it had been sick.