'Ball of fury' cat traps California mother, daughter for hours: report

A family cat turned into a "ball of fury" and trapped a California woman and her daughter in a bedroom for hours, forcing them to dial 911 so police could coax the feline from the house, local media said Thursday.

Broadcaster KGTV-TV said the unnamed woman and her adult daughter telephoned the authorities in fear because their enraged cat, "Cuppy," attacked them each time they tried to leave.

Speaking outside the home in San Diego County and brandishing a broom in case the cat came her way, neighbor Karen Yarger told the TV station: "He's just a ball of fury."

KGTV-TV said Cuppy has been a family pet for 14 years. It said such calls are normally handled by animal control, but that officers from the Chula Vista Police Department were in the area with no pressing calls and so were able to help by cajoling it out of the house and into the garden.

The case recalled a similar one in Portland, Oregon, earlier this year when a 22-pound (10 kg) house cat called Lux attacked a baby and trapped a family in a bedroom.