California mom fends off mountain lion attacking 5-year-old son

CALABASAS, Calif. — A parent fended disconnected a upland lion that was attacking her 5-year-old lad adjacent Calabasas past Thursday, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The CDFW says the 65-pound upland lion attacked the lad portion helium was playing successful his beforehand gait astatine astir 10:45 a.m. PST, inflicting wounds to his head, neck, and precocious torso. Capt. Patrick Foy, a spokesperson with the CDFW, told The Associated Press that the upland lion dragged the lad astir 45 yards crossed the lawn.

Luckily, the boy’s parent became alert of the attack, ran retired of the house, and started punching the lion with her bare hands to get it disconnected her son, Foy told the AP. The spokesperson called the ma “the existent leader of this story” for redeeming her son.

The boy’s parents past transported him to a hospital, wherever officials accidental helium was treated for his injuries and remains successful “stable condition.”

After learning of the attack, the CDFW says its instrumentality enforcement part began an probe that included interviewing the victim’s household and visiting the country of the incident.

During a clearing of the family’s yard, the CDFW says a wildlife serviceman astatine the location discovered an “aggressive” upland lion crouched successful the country of the property.

“Due to its behaviour and proximity to the attack, the warden believed it was apt the attacking lion and to support nationalist information changeable and killed it connected site,” said the CDFW.

About 20 minutes aft the serviceman changeable the upland lion, officials accidental 2 much appeared, including a full-grown big with a vigor collar astir its neck, arsenic good arsenic a smaller lion.

“After confirming with the boy’s parent that the attacking lion did not person a collar, the wildlife serviceman utilized a non-lethal tranquilizing firearm to seizure the different non-collared lion,” said the CDFW.

Officials accidental they were capable to usage DNA samples to corroborate that the upland lion changeable astatine the location was the aforesaid carnal that attacked the boy.

After coordination with the National Park Service (NPS), the big collared lion was identified arsenic a pistillate upland lion who is portion of an NPS upland lion study. She is known to person birthed cubs successful October 2020 and has nary known human-wildlife conflicts successful her history. She was not captured, and her collar speechmaking showed she has since vacated the neighborhood.

In coordination with NPS, the non-offending tranquilized lion was collared and released into the nearest suitable situation adjacent the different collard lion.