A California woman is being hailed a hero after rescuing her 5-year-old son from a mountain lion attack.
According to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Los Angeles-area mother used her bare hands to fight off the mountain lion as it attacked her son. The mom heard commotion from inside her home and went outside to find the lion attacking her son, having dragged him about 45 yards across the lawn.
“She started punching and striking the mountain lion with her bare hands and got him off her son,” Fish and Wildlife spokesman Captain Patrick Foy said.
The boy’s parents drove the child to the hospital and notified law enforcement of the attack. A wildlife officer was sent to the scene and found a mountain lion hiding in the bushes with its “ears back and hissing” at him.
“Due to its behavior 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. DNA tests proved that it was the attacking lion.
Another mountain lion later appeared and was tranquilized and moved to another location. The second mountain lion, found to be collared and part of a National Park Service study, was not part of the attack and has no known history of attacking humans, according to the department.
The 65-pound mountain lion left the boy with injuries to his head, neck and chest. He is currently in stable condition and recovering.