Mountain Lion Linked To Southern California Boy's Attack Killed By Wildlife Officials
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - California wildlife officials plan to conduct DNA and disease tests in Sacramento to make sure they shot and killed the mountain lion that attacked a 6-year-old boy on a hiking trail..
After three days of searching and trap setting, the mountain lion was found and treed by dogs Wednesday before it was fatally shot in Cupertino by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, agency spokesman Patrick Foy said.
Several factors led the agency to believe it was the right cat, including its fitting the description, its aggression toward the crew that found it and its appearing 130 yards from the spot of the attack, but DNA tests would be necessary to confirm its identity.
"I think it's very, very highly likely, but we can't put a 100 percent stamp on it until we get the DNA," Foy said.
Officials defended the decision to kill the cougar instead of trying to bring it in alive.
"No one at the department wanted to destroy this animal but protecting public safety is a first and foremost priority," Fish and Wildlife said in a statement.
Foy said the 65-pound male mountain lion and search team trapped it in a tree about 70 feet high, where it would have been incredibly difficult to dart and capture and would likely have died in the fall.
"The conditions made it really not a viable option," Foy said. "We figured we'd better get it in hand."
The cougar will be tested for rabies and other diseases to determine what might have brought it to attack the boy as he walked slightly ahead of a large group of hikers in the Silicon Valley city.
Biologists had set several traps near the Picchetti Ranch Zinfandel Trail in hopes of capturing the mountain lion, and two search teams had scoured the series of trails looking for it.
Officials said the injured boy was released from the hospital on Monday, a day after suffering bite wounds and scratches on his head and neck while hiking with his family and others. His name has not been released.
The boy's father told investigators his son was about 10 feet ahead of the group when the cougar appeared from nowhere and attacked him.
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Associated Press writer Andrew Dalton contributed to this report from Los Angeles.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press.