22-Pound Cat Named Lux Holds Oregon Family Hostage

An Oregon family says they're not ready to give up on their pet cat, even after it attacked their baby and forced the family to take cover in a bedroom.

The 4-year-old cat, a 22-pound part-Himalayan named Lux, might look harmless, but its owners say it has a "history" of violent behavior.

Emergency dispatchers in Portland sent officers to contain the cat after receiving the family’s frantic 911 call.

CALLER: "He's charging us. He’s at our door, our bedroom door."

DISPATCHER: "One moment, okay?

CALLER: "Do you hear him? That was the cat."

DISPATCHER: "Yeah, I hear him. Keep the door shut, okay?"

When police got there, the family was too afraid to come out of the bedroom to let them in.

Officers eventually got inside and were able to snare Lux and put him behind bars -- in a crate.

The family says that even though Lux is just a cat, they were genuinely scared.

"He started hissing and -- just rarrrr, like yowls, not like a meow, but yowls,” said Teresa Barker, the cat’s co-owner. “He was really like crazy."

Lee Palmer, Barker's boyfriend and Lux's co-owner, says the animal attacked after their 7-month-old child pulled its tail. The baby was not seriously hurt.

Palmer says he's taking the feline to a veterinarian. A pet psychologist also is due at the house.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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