A mother has fought off a mountain lion that attacked her five-year-old son in southern California.
The 30kg lion attacked the boy while he was playing near his house in Calabasas and “dragged him about 45 yards” across the front lawn, said Capt Patrick Foy of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
The boy suffered significant traumatic injuries to his head and upper torso but is in a stable condition at a Los Angeles hospital.
The animal was later killed by a wildlife officer.
“The true hero of this story is his mom because she absolutely saved her son’s life,” Capt Foy said.
The mother was inside the house when she heard commotion outside. “She ran out of the house and started punching and striking the mountain lion with her bare hands and got him off her son,” Capt Foy said. The parents then drove the boy to the hospital.
A wildlife officer went to the house and discovered the mountain lion crouching in the bushes with its “ears back and hissing” at him, Capt Foy said.
“Due to its behaviour and proximity to the attack, the warden believed it was likely the attacking lion and to protect public safety shot and killed it on site,” the wildlife department said in a statement.
Subsequent DNA tests confirmed that the lion was the one responsible for attacking the child, the statement said.
Another mountain lion spotted in the area was tranquilised and then released into the wild unharmed after being tested to be sure it was not involved in the attack. – PA