A mother living in South California hearing a noise outdoors Thursday morning and saw a 65-pound mountain lion pulling her 5-year-old kid through her front yard, Wildlife authorities say.
Captain Patrick Foy of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, told the Associated Press, “She rushed out of the home and started punching and striking the creature with her bare hands and pulled him off her son.”
“His mother is the actual hero of this narrative because she literally saved her son’s life,” Foy added. The child is in stable condition at the hospital after suffering injuries to his head and chest.
A wildlife officer subsequently shot and killed the mountain lion after discovering it lurking in a corner of the Calabasas property, according to a news statement from the department.
DNA tests proved it was the same creature that mauled the kid, according to the press statement.
Another two mountain lions appeared several minutes later. One, recognized as P-54, had a collar, while the other had none. The officer calmed the uncollared mountain lion.
GPS tracking shows P-54 has left the area, wildlife officials confirmed. The killed mountain lion was one of its cubs. The surviving cub has been moved near P-54.
“There is a lot of worry among citizens who are angry that we shot the mountain lion responsible for harming that boy,” Foy remarked during a discussion with the Los Angeles Times.
“The creature was attempting to kill and eat that boy, sadly,” Foy continued. “Many people of the public don’t want to consider a human being as a prey item. It does happen at times.”
It was the first mountain lion assault on a human in Los Angeles in 25 years, the agency added.
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