Dog mauled while defending owners against mountain lion

Danny Tse

From here

LAKE ELSINORE, Calif. – A mountain lion attacked and nearly killed a dog that defended its owners Tuesday on a trail in the Santa Ana Mountains.

The dog was severely mauled in the stomach area and rushed to a veterinary hospital for surgery, said Orange County sheriff's spokesman Jim Amormino. The 5-year-old shepherd mix named Hoagie underwent a four-hour operation and was expected to survive, he said.

William Morse told KABC-TV that he was hiking with his wife near a campground in the Cleveland National Forest, about 10 miles from Lake Elsinore, when a 120-pound mountain lion approached.

"Out of nowhere, a mountain lion just charged us, attacked us. And my dog saved our lives," Morse said.

He said the attack lasted less than 10 seconds and left the dog with deep wounds.

But, Amormino said, the dog put up a "vicious fight. I'm sure that lion was hurt, too."

Morse said he was traumatized by the attack and will never return to the campground where he and his wife have been hiking for years.

Sheriff's deputies and Forest Service officials have not located the mountain lion, which will be destroyed if located, officials said.

dorokusai

Why kill the mountain lion? That's the chance you take when you venture into nature. It's cool that the dog will survive....I'd have been all over the lion if he touched my dog....which would have been behind me of course.

Face

It's no mountain lion, but: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,284635,00.html

Lord Vader

dorokusai wrote: »

Why kill the mountain lion? That's the chance you take when you venture into nature. It's cool that the dog will survive....I'd have been all over the lion if he touched my dog....which would have been behind me of course.

Having lived and hiked in these mountains, I can state with certainty this cat will attack people again, maybe even an unsuspecting child. It should be put down and quickly. Even if it could be safely trapped, it would still pose a danger.

seeclear

lord vader wrote: »

having lived and hiked in these mountains, i can state with certainty this cat will attack people again, maybe even an unsuspecting child. It should be put down and quickly. Even if it could be safely trapped, it would still pose a danger.

+1..

Knucklehead

capture it and put it in a zoo....it dosent deserve to die, it deserves to be behind bars for the rest of its life.

shadowofnight

dorokusai wrote: »

Why kill the mountain lion? That's the chance you take when you venture into nature. It's cool that the dog will survive....I'd have been all over the lion if he touched my dog....which would have been behind me of course.

Lord Vader wrote: »

Having lived and hiked in these mountains, I can state with certainty this cat will attack people again, maybe even an unsuspecting child. It should be put down and quickly. Even if it could be safely trapped, it would still pose a danger.

Both very very good points....if this happened close to known hiking trails, then I would say the cat posed a risk to the general population and would need to be removed ( Not neccesarily put down...but removed from the area ).

Then again, as Mark mentioned...how would you like it if all of your life you have been king **** of your piece of the forrest ( Well there is that big pesky furry thing that puts claw marks way up high on some of the trees in my territory...I just stay clear of him ) and into your domain walks up these 2 snack sized animals you had never seen before ? I mean not only are they tresspassing, but they are possible meal items.....it just surprises me when people are shocked and outraged when animals are really only doing what comes naturally ( The cat saw the dog as an easy meal ...and probably would have only attacked a human if injured or starving )

In Shady Cove Oregon, I came across the hugest mountain lion I had ever seen...no more then 100 or so yards away...on a friends 40 acres in the middle of nowhere. I had him in my sights and did not pull the trigger...believe me, he knew I was coming long before I ever saw him ( We humans basically suck when it comes to senses ) and he was just standing his ground on the ridge watching me. Actually my big **** was larger then most of the black bears in the area ....so for both of us it was a mutual " I better keep an eye on this fellow "

I could have killed him, there was no reason to...I am sure he associated the gunshots in the area to me and wasnt coming anywhere near me...besides there was so many deer in the area and that boy looked so healthy ...he forgot about me in seconds. I didnt see him again for the remainding 2 weeks either.

shadowofnight

Lasareath wrote: »

This is about the only thing that will attack me in my neighborhood.

My Wife took this photo yesterday on our front lawn

Cmon Sal, that area has to have racoons and possums too

When I used to lived in south san jose near the mountains I had a racoon going through my garbage cans in front of the house at midnight when going home for "Lunch" ( Middle of the night ) . He made it well known he would leave only when he was finished Again, I could have pushed the issue and gone inside and gotten the 25 caliber beeman air rifle....but he was just hungry and so was I ( On the clock too ) so I let him slide. He sure put on a hell of a show of aggression...I was actually pretty impressed how brave he was.

So watch out for those rabid bunnies in your area

janmike

shadowofnight wrote: »

... I didnt see him again for the remainding 2 weeks either.

I bet he saw you. While extremely dangerous, Cougars and Polar Bears are 2 of the most majestic animals on the planet IMO.

shadowofnight

janmike wrote: »

I bet he saw you. While extremely dangerous, Cougars and Polar Bears are 2 of the most majestic animals on the planet IMO.

Oh yeah, I am positive he did...and probably showed me his **** as I was leaving too

They sure are awesome...really any large carnivore facinates me, what made it so awesome too is that with all my years of hunting and being in the wild...that was the first and only mountain lion I had ever seen in the wild.

ben62670

Kill it. The thing attached a person in the day. There is a decent chance it could be infected with something. A 100# cat can easily take a child. Don't worry there is no shortage of big cats out there.

NJPOLKER

Lasareath wrote: »

This is about the only thing that will attack me in my neighborhood.

My Wife took this photo yesterday on our front lawn

Hey Sal,
I'll take the rabbit vs you any day!

Ricardo

"Sheriff's deputies and Forest Service officials have not located the mountain lion, which will be destroyed if located, officials said.

Knucklehead

poor kitty got nuked!

exalted512

ben62670 wrote: »

Kill it. The thing attached a person in the day. There is a decent chance it could be infected with something. A 100# cat can easily take a child. Don't worry there is no shortage of big cats out there.

A 100 pound can easily take about anything it wants to...
-Cody

Lord Vader

being a pround member of PETA(People for the Eating of Tasty Animals) I must state that killing this cat is the right thing to do. All this about sparing the cat is nice, but what about sparing people for a change?

dorokusai

The "people" could use some thinning out out if you ask me....sometimes you lose a good one but the percentages aren't bad.

steveinaz

dorokusai wrote: »

Why kill the mountain lion? That's the chance you take when you venture into nature. It's cool that the dog will survive....I'd have been all over the lion if he touched my dog....which would have been behind me of course.

+10. That's the lions environment, you go in it, you run a risk.

Lord Vader

steveinaz wrote: »

+10. That's the lions environment, you go in it, you run a risk.

I am at a loss as to explain... The value of HUMAN life is far more important than this cat's, yet you would rather people die instead? As far as 'environment' is concerned, this planet and every corner of every continent, from the tallest mountain to the bottom of the sea is the domain of mankind. To be sure, we must be responsible with it and care for it, but we must also PROTECT ourselves. Maybe Sigfried and Roy will take it in...

steveinaz

So shall we go out and kill all dangerous animals? Rid the oceans of sharks? Educate yourself before you hike; carry a firearm, bear spray, whatever--be prepared. I'm not saying you don't kill an animal actively attacking you, but why hunt one down after the fact? Kalifornia of all places---the tree-huggers mecca, or so they claim.

bruss

I think they should waterboard the cat first to see what he knows... Then kill it

shawn474

Why kill the mountain lion? They were hiking in the wilderness; it wasn't like it was a residential area. If it was, by all means, it poses a risk and should be taken care of. But when you go hiking, part of the intrigue is to see the wildlife in its natural environment. You don't want the risk? Go to a zoo. If that thing was infected with something, there is no way that that fight would have lasted only 10 seconds and the dog that was attacked probably would not have survived.

TNRabbit

bruss wrote: »

I think they should waterboard the cat first to see what he knows... Then kill it

Priceless~

Lord Vader

steveinaz wrote: »

So shall we go out and kill all dangerous animals? Rid the oceans of sharks? Educate yourself before you hike; carry a firearm, bear spray, whatever--be prepared. I'm not saying you don't kill an animal actively attacking you, but why hunt one down after the fact? Kalifornia of all places---the tree-huggers mecca, or so they claim.

First off... 99.99% of wildlife displays a certain fear of man, and rightly so. and 99% of the time this cat would have walked, or run the OTHER way. Not so in this case. This particular cat decided that people were a tasty meal, and once they attach people, they will do so again. It is the same reason a farmer will put down the family dog if it turns on his chickens. Once an animal becomes a danger to people, then people come first. A zoo would also be dangerous for a cat like this as it would turn on those feeding it and also pose a risk to other animals.

shack

steveinaz wrote:

So shall we go out and kill all dangerous animals? Rid the oceans of sharks? Educate yourself before you hike; carry a firearm, bear spray, whatever--be prepared. I'm not saying you don't kill an animal actively attacking you, but why hunt one down after the fact? Kalifornia of all places---the tree-huggers mecca, or so they claim.

shawn474 wrote:

Why kill the mountain lion? They were hiking in the wilderness; it wasn't like it was a residential area. If it was, by all means, it poses a risk and should be taken care of. But when you go hiking, part of the intrigue is to see the wildlife in its natural environment. You don't want the risk? Go to a zoo. If that thing was infected with something, there is no way that that fight would have lasted only 10 seconds and the dog that was attacked probably would not have survived.

I agree. With the "kill the dangerous animal" mentality...in a few generations, it won't be a problem, because there won't be any to worry about.

dorokusai wrote:

The "people" could use some thinning out out if you ask me....sometimes you lose a good one but the percentages aren't bad.

Unfortunately natural selection doesn't work as well with humans as it does in the animal kingdom.

edbert

Lasareath wrote: »

This is about the only thing that will attack me in my neighborhood.

My Wife took this photo yesterday on our front lawn

They are more dangerous than you think!!!!!

Airplay355

If they haven't found the lion, how do they know it weighs 120lbs? How does that guy know the lion wanted to kill them? It went after the dog. A dog is certainly snack sized food. Why are we going to kill a lion for trying to eat a dog. It's not some vicious killer, it couldn't even finish the dog off. It never even touched the people, hurt the people and certainly didn't kill anyone.

I found a shark tooth on the beach the other day, so clearly there are hungry sharks in the area. I'd like to go into the ocean so I think we should rid the ocean of sharks so I can protect myself. :rolleyes:

Human life is not sacred, get over yourself. You're just tiger/lion/shark food that has been lucky enough to not get eaten yet.

+1 Shack. The smartest animal on the planet manages to protect it's species from natural selection with it's technology and make the species worse off as a whole....ironic isn't it.

Airplay355

http://www.wildlifemanagementpro.com/2008/03/26/mule-kills-mountain-lion-photos/ Another lion that wanted to eat dogs. Maybe we should kill the mules/horses too, since if they wanted to turn on you they could easily kill you.

wingnut4772

I couldn't have read past the first sentence if they didn't say the dog would make it. What lucky people.

steveinaz

Lord Vader wrote: »

First off... 99.99% of wildlife displays a certain fear of man, and rightly so. and 99% of the time this cat would have walked, or run the OTHER way. Not so in this case. This particular cat decided that people were a tasty meal, and once they attach people, they will do so again. It is the same reason a farmer will put down the family dog if it turns on his chickens. Once an animal becomes a danger to people, then people come first. A zoo would also be dangerous for a cat like this as it would turn on those feeding it and also pose a risk to other animals.

A PREDATORY instinct was triggered in that cat, for whatever reason; which can happen with any wild animal. ANY wild animal has the potential to attack.

Your example about the farm dog is an apples to oranges comparison. The lion displayed normal predatory behavior. Do you think lions are taught to not attack humans? We are food baby, just like anything else.

snow

steveinaz wrote: »

So shall we go out and kill all dangerous animals? Rid the oceans of sharks? Educate yourself before you hike; carry a firearm, bear spray, whatever--be prepared. I'm not saying you don't kill an animal actively attacking you, but why hunt one down after the fact? Kalifornia of all places---the tree-huggers mecca, or so they claim.

Simply because if a mountain lion starts stalking humans it wont stop, and this was near a campground where there are going to be lots more tasty humans and odds are the next time it attacks which it will, there wont be a dog present to protect them, time and again mountain lions that attack humans once do so again and again until killed it's sad but a fact. The same way with tigers in india or bears in north america. Sure it would be nice if everyone carried a weapon and was prepared but they arent prepared and wont carry a weapon and even if everyone was prepared and did carry a weapon why should they wait until it attacks again knowing full well it will? Sure you can say ok we were kind and waited till it attacked again before we killed it but my little girl was mauled and scarred for life.



REGARDS SNOW