Runaway bobcat returned to New Jersey woman

DNA testing could not prove 'Rocky,' a New Jersey feline, is a purebred bobcat. Ginny Fine, the cat's owner, will not need a special permit to keep Rocky, and was able to retain custody of him after pleading guilty to letting the animal get loose.

Rocky's mother was 98 percentbobcat.

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But because a DNA test couldn't determine the 38-pound feline's father's lineage, a judge ruled Friday that the runaway cat be returned to a New Jersey woman.

Municipal Court Judge Damian Murray ruled that Ginny Fine can regain custody of Rocky after a mitochondrial DNA test found that the cat's mother was 98 percentbobcat, but couldn't determine its father's lineage, the Asbury Park Press reported.

Mitochondrial DNA is inherited solely from the mother.

"The bottom line is, Rocky goes home," Murray said.

Fine, who has maintained that Rocky is a hybridbobcatand Maine coon, said she was shocked by the ruling.

"I don't even know what to say. I was not expecting that," she said outside of court.

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Runaway bobcat returned to New Jersey woman