Posted on 06/20/2009 8:06:34 AM PDT by JoeProBono
Canadian mother Maureen Lee has fought off a cougar that leapt onto her daughter during a walk in the woods with her bare hands. Seeing her child pinned she dove between the two and threw the large cat off before scooping up her child and running.
Her three-year-old daughter, who thought the animal just wanted to play, is recovering nicely from puncture wounds on her head and arm. The cougar fared less well - conservation officers located it and killed it.
What? Was the attacker her gym teacher?
Oh but they were in the Cougar’s territory, and it was here first. Shouldn’t they have shot the little girl and her mother instead? Or at least return the girl to the Cougar and apologize?
These heart rending stories of our encroachment on “their” lands are too much to take.
/s
I recall as a young man, tv shows about cougars, mountain lions, always emphasized how they were so elusive and fearful of man it was almost impossible to see one. Then the brilliant liberals decided to stop hunting. So they can hunt us.
I guess the cougar learned it isn’t smart to get between a mother and her cub.
The cougar must have been tagged. Tagged kitties ought not be bad. That little girl is lucky to have a quick thinking, brave mother who loves her.
The Mom is an absolute HERO!!!
PING! Another mountain lion attack story.
I wonder how they know they shot the same cougar?
yep they seem to be taking a beating lately...there were the chihuahuas and now this
Two words: Carry. Permit. Neither allowed in Canada.
Another pitbull with lipstick. God bless the mothers. You’d better not endanger their babies!!!
Thanks for the ping, I-M.
Here’s a little more info on the attack and some background, it looks like a case of too many lions in the entire area.
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Cougar killed after mauling B.C. toddler
SQUAMISH, B.C. — A three-year-old girl was out for a walk with her mom in their Squamish neighbourhood at dinnertime Tuesday evening when she was attacked by a cougar.
The child’s father told CBC the girl thought the cougar was playing with her when it swiped at her from behind as she strolled in Fisherman’s Park near the Squamish River.
Her mother frantically fought off the cat, neighbours said, while onlookers cornered it near the river. But in the nearly three hours it took for cougar hounds to arrive, the animal slipped away into the wilds around Squamish’s Brackendale neighbourhood.
Squamish is about 65 kilometres north of Vancouver.
Five conservation officers, aided by about five hounds, scoured the area late Tuesday night, killing an adult male cat just after 10 p.m., Squamish RCMP Cpl. Dave Ritchie said.
He said officers are 99-per-cent sure it’s the same cat involved in the attack but won’t know for sure until an autopsy is done. The cat was tracked to railway tracks about six blocks north of the attack.
Shortly after the incident occurred at about 6:30 p.m., police had ordered residents to keep their pets inside and remain indoors for nearly two hours. They closed off the roads near Eagle Run Drive and Maple Crescent to make room for a medevac helicopter.
But B.C. Ambulance spokeswoman Kristy Hillen said the helicopter wasn’t needed as the girl’s injuries were not as serious as first thought. She was instead taken to Squamish General Hospital in a ground ambulance and is being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
The attack has shocked residents of the rural community, which is known as a nesting ground for eagles, and sits on the banks of the river. Residents watched as the police and conservation officers wandered around their neighbourhood.
“You don’t expect anything like that happen,” neighbour Claire Cote said. “The kids play in that area. We’ll be thinking twice before we go out there now.”
The attack occurred at the same time as the B.C. Environment Ministry’s conservation officer service issued a warning to hikers about a high incidence of cougar sightings on and around the popular Chief Trail near Squamish.
The trail is a challenging hiking route on the Stawamus Chief, a massive granite monolith on the southern outskirts of Squamish.
So far this month there have been 30 cougar sightings — an unusually high number — and a number of dogs walking with their owners have been attacked.
In the same period last year, on the Chief Trail near Squamish, there were only two cougar sightings.
“Attacks on pets are not rare, but on Friday a dog was attacked and killed while it was on-leash, which was a rare event as cougars normally avoid getting into close proximity of humans,” Conservation Officer Terry Myroniuk said.
Myroniuk said officers were concerned that there were a number of cougars in the area that might have become habituated to humans.
“That’s what happens when they become used to seeing people and lose their fear of humans,” he said.
http://www.calgaryherald.com/Travel/Cougar+killed+after+mauling+toddler/1704783/story.html
Beginning to think that "rare" should be upgraded to "uncommon." Thanks for the background info, Jaz!
I think you're right. Any cougar that starts eating pets and livestock in a populated area has lost is natural fear of man and should be eliminated, it will be a lesson to the remaining cats.
Jack Bauer would be proud of this lady.
Tagging cougars was practically a hobby of mine.
Then I got married.
Let's see 30 sightings in a month, that's one a day. Events are going to be more common real soon.
Yep. I rassled a cougar or two bare handed back in the day.
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