8-Year-Old Recalls Moment Mountain Lion Attacked Him in Colorado

Alan Cheung
By Alan Cheung
September 9, 2019US News
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8-Year-Old Recalls Moment Mountain Lion Attacked Him in Colorado
Stock photo of mountain lion. (Pixabay)

Eight-year-old Pike Carlson has recalled the moment he fought for his life after a 65-pound mountain lion attacked him in Colorado.

“I just see this mountain lion jump on it,” he said. “And then it kind of pounces onto me and he kind of rolled down the hill to a tree and it tries to push me under the tree,” CNN reported.

At this point, he made a decision to fight back.

“I pick up a stick trying to jab it in the eye, but then the stick breaks,” he added.

The attack resulted in two surgeries and more than 60 staples in his head.

Pike was playing with his Gage, his older brother, on a trampoline in their backyard in Bailey, New York Daily News reported.

Ron Carlson, their father, came running out with a knife after Gage ran to get help.

“That parental instinct to protect your child kind of kicks in,” Ron said.

What Ron saw when he arrived made him “snap.”

“His head was inside the lion’s mouth,” Ron told Fox News. “And I watched and I think that’s what made me snap inside, just watching him chew on him.”

After Ron scared the mountain lion off, his focus turned to saving his son’s life.

“When I first picked him up, I could see the whole side of his face was open. There was blood all over him. His scalp was ripped open in several spots,” Ron said, KUSA reported.

“It was something that no parent should ever see,” he added.

A GoFundMe page was made to support the Carlson family’s medical bills.

The description gave a plea to the public for help.

“This compassionate young boy has endured multiple surgeries, and he’ll have to face more down the road,” the family wrote.

“Donations will go toward ongoing medical expenses and recovery, as it will be lifelong. Donations will also go toward travel expenses and lost wages.”

Mountain Lions Euthanized

On Aug. 22. Colorado Parks and Wildlife issued a press release on the mountain lion that attacked Pike.

When Parks and Wildlife officers arrived at the scene of the incident, they set a trap and brought in three dogs to search for the lion.

Wildlife officers set a trap
Wildlife officers set a trap to capture a mountain lion that attacked an 8-year-old Colorado boy. (Colorado Parks and Wildlife/CNN)

After a few hours, they failed to find the feline culprit.

Four days later, officials sent out another press release and said they found two mountain lions feeding on a domestic goat.

Both mountain lions were euthanized at the location of the goat’s carcass.

DNA tests found that the fur from one of the mountain lions matched with the fur taken from the 8-year-old boy’s chest and neck, and his father’s DNA.

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