Video shows man saving his wife from a bobcat by throwing it across the lawn

Quiet morning quickly turns into complete chaos as animal attacks woman holding pet carrier

A man saved his wife from a bobcat by picking it up with his bare hands and throwing it across the lawn, a viral video appears to show.

The video, which looks to be taken from home surveillance footage, begins with the man greeting a woman jogging down the street.

He says "I need to wash my car," as he puts down his cup on the hood to pull out his car keys to unlock his vehicle. His wife appears in the video as he opens the rear car door.

That's when the howl of a bobcat can be heard. The woman stops to see what made the sound. She yells "Run! Run!" as the bobcat appears to be attacking her from behind.

The man runs around the car and grabs the bobcat, holding it as far away from his body as he can. The wife runs back into the house.

The female jogger returns after hearing the commotion. "A bobcat!" the man shouts and throws the animal away from himself.

The man shouts at the bobcat to "Get out! Get out! Get out!" The jogger runs towards the animal, yelling "Go! Go!"

The bobcat lands on the lawn, about ten feet away, and immediately runs underneath the car.

"I'll shoot that f****r!" the man shouts.

He sees someone off-camera and yells: "Watch out! It's a bobcat that attacked my wife!"

"A bobcat?" the person asks.

"A bobcat!" the man can be heard yelling back.

The video had garnered over 5.3 million views as of Friday morning. Most bobcats are known to give humans a wide berth, but those who are sick or rabid sometimes go on the offensive.

If you end up coming face to face with one of these animals, experts advise backing away slowly without turning your back towards them. Running or showing your back could set off the cat's instinct to hunt.

Loud noises can help scare off the animals. But if you see a bobcat in your neighbourhood, experts say you should call animal control who can capture, treat, and release the animals properly.

Conservation biologist Imogene Cancellare wrote on Twitter that bobcats "are most active at dusk and dawn. They spend a lot of time resting during the middle of the day, but it's not out of the ordinary for them to be out and about, nor indicative of illness if you see one".

She added that they "don’t normally seek out humans. Most interactions we hear about are with cornered animals found in buildings, or when pets are attacked. Bobcats are intense, loud, and obnoxious, but they are defensive animals, not offensive animals”.