Mountain Lion Suspected Of Attacking 6-Year-Old Boy Near Cupertino Killed
CUPERTINO (CBS SF) -- A mountain lion suspected of attacking a 6-year-old boy in the hills above Cupertino over the weekend has been reportedly found and killed.
In a statement released Wednesday, The California Department of Fish and Wildlife said the 65-pound mountain lion was found by a group of search dogs Wednesday morning. The cat was found 70 feet up in a tree, about 130 yards from where the boy was attacked.
"The fact that it was so close to the attack site, coupled with the territorial behavior, likely indicates that this was a local lion probably involved in the incident as opposed to one that was passing through the area," the statement read.
MOUNTAIN LION ATTACK:
- DNA Test Reveals Mountain Lion That Attacked Boy Near Cupertino Is Male
- California's Drought May Be A Factor In Cupertino Mountain Lion Attack; Wildlife Advocates Say
- Mountain Lion Likely Followed Family After Attacking Boy
Officials said they euthanized the lion after determining that tranquilizing the animal was not a reasonable option and that the fall would have killed the mountain lion anyway.
"It would not have been possible to tranquilize it. It would have died in the fall at that height. So, it displayed some extremely aggressive behavior, it crouched down and acted like it was going to jump at the warden," Kirsten Macintyre of the Department of Fish and Wildlife told KPIX 5.
A tweet from the Department of Fish and Wildlife showed paw prints near the search area early Wednesday morning.
The cat was sent to Sacramento for testing, to determine if the animal is the one that mauled the child and if the cat had rabies.
Tests had shown the mountain lion which attacked the boy Sunday was a male, and searchers had been looking for the big cat after the attack in the Picchetti Open Space Preserve.
"Cats simply do not attack people with any regularity. These are so uncommon and even beyond that the fact that it attacked a person in a group of people that's practically unheard of," Macintyre said.
Two families were hiking on a marked trail when the mountain lion attacked the boy. The 6-year-old was about 10 feet ahead of the group when the cat jumped out from a hidden spot.
"It's especially disconcerting realizing how close this is to a winery and these are marked walking trails, where people are out all the time. And this was a cat that was not going to change its behavior, it was definitely an ongoing public safety threat," Macintyre said.
The boy suffered non-life threatening wounds was discharged Monday morning from Santa Clara Valley Medical Center.
Fish and Wildlife officials said the trail will remain closed for the next couple of days.
According to the Department of Fish and Wildlife, there are an estimated 4,000 to 6,000 mountain lions living in California.
