Two mountain lions were killed after a mother and her 5-year-old son were attacked Friday night in Pitkin County and the mother fought off the cat.
Jennifer Churchill, a spokeswoman for Colorado Parks and Wildlife, said the attack happened at about 8 p.m. in the lower Woody Creek area.
The Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office told the Associated Press that the boy’s mother heard screaming while he was playing outside in the front yard with his older brother. The mother ran outside, where she saw the animal on top of her son and was able to drag him away.
Pitkin County sheriff’s Deputy Michael Buglione told the Aspen Times the mom pulled one of the lion’s paws off the boy and saw that the animal had the child’s head completely in its mouth. The mom then reached into the animal’s mouth and pried her son’s head from its jaws.
“She’s a hero,” Buglione said.
The sheriff’s office said the boy suffered face, head and neck injuries and was in fair condition at a hospital in Denver. The mother was treated and released from a hospital.
Later in the night, Churchill said, a Pitkin County Sheriff’s deputy and a forest ranger spotted a mountain lion in the area and contacted Parks and Wildlife officials. Officials all agreed the lion should be shot and killed.
A second mountain lion was spotted around 2 a.m., about 600 yards from where the boy had been attacked. That lion was also shot and killed. Parks and Wildlife officials remain in the area in case any other lions are spotted.
Churchill said it is the policy of Colorado Parks and Wildlife to kill animals that may have been involved in an attack for public safety reasons.
Churchill said both lions are estimated to be less than a year old.
“Young lions are sometimes involved in attacks, when for various reasons, they haven’t been taught well by adults to go after appropriate prey,” Churchill said.
Both lions were taken to Fort Collins on Saturday for a necropsy to confirm if the animals were involved in the attack, she said. Tests will also be conducted to make sure the lions weren’t sick.
DNA samples are being sent to a lab in Wyoming, but there is no estimate on when the results will be back.
The family has not been identified. Churchill said they have not authorized any release of their information or updates on their condition.
The last known lion attack on a human in Colorado occurred in July 2015. A young lion attacked a man as he fished along north of Dotsero, about 60 miles from where Friday night’s attack occurred. The man had scratches and bites on his back and was treated and released from a local clinic.
According to Parks and Wildlife, there have been three fatal attacks by mountain lions in Colorado since 1990, and 18 non-fatal injury attacks since 1970.
“These attacks are certainly rare, but not unheard of,” Churchill said.
Anyone who is attacked by a mountain lion, should fight back, much like the mom did in Pitkin County.
“Lions have been driven away by prey that fights back. People have fought back with rocks, sticks, caps or jackets, garden tools and their bare hands successfully,” Parks and Wildlife information states.
If you encounter a mountain lion that isn’t attacking, the department suggests talking calmly and firmly to it while moving slowly away if possible.
