Colorado Hunter Fights Off Mountain Lion With Pocket Knife

A hunter used a pocket knife to fight off an aggressive mountain lion in Colorado on Aug. 10. (Photo Credit: through-my-lens / Getty Images) A hunter was able to escape from an aggressive mountain lion after he stabbed it with his pocket knife, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials. Richard Marriott, who was attacked by the mountain lion on Aug. 10, wasn’t expecting the large animal to show up during his hunting trip, Sky-Hi News reported. Marriott only sustained minor injuries from the attack, however, he is still in shock from the scary encounter. “I can’t believe it actually happened,” Marriott told Sky-Hi News. “I’m lucky it didn’t get a lot worse.” Marriott was scouting elk in the woods near Kremmling, Colorado, when he noticed something creeping up on the trail behind him: a mountain lion. Marriott faced the mountain lion and slowly walked backwards, in hopes that it would go away. The animal then picked up its pace and started to swerve back and forth through the trees, following Marriott for about 10 minutes. Marriott was almost safe from the mountain lion until he tripped over a log and fell onto his backside. At that moment, Marriott thought he was done for, however, the mountain lion just swiped his leg. Marriott didn’t bring his pistol on the hunting trip and only had his pocket knife on him for self-defense. He managed to hit the mountain lion in the face with the weapon’s small blade, however, the animal wasn’t completely injured. Marriott then continued to throw rocks at the mountain lion and shout at it. People heard Marriott screaming at the animal and called 911. Authorities then arrived at the scene and met Marriott at the bottom of the mountain. Marriott told the wildlife officers that he thought the mountain lion was “curious,” however, they told him that the animal had to be put down for safety reasons. On Aug. 11, Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials tracked down the mountain lion and killed it, KCNC-TV noted. Officials said the mountain lion was acting very aggressive and didn’t run away when they spotted it in the woods. A necropsy showed that the animal only had some grass in its stomach, so it’s possible that it was really hungry at the time of the attack. Mike Porras, a Colorado Parks and Wildlife spokesperson, said Marriott did everything right during the time of the attack, including slowly walking backwards from the animal. Porras also said the agency prioritizes human safety, and if wildlife is aggressive towards humans, Colorado Parks and Wildlife has to unfortunately put those animals down. Marriott was thankful no one else was hurt in the mountain lion incident, however, he said he will always carry his pistol with him from now on. “I think I would have been able to give it a warning shot and hopefully it would have ran off. That’s what I kind of take from all of this,” Marriott added. “When I go into the field now, I need to make sure I have my sidearm.” More on Geek.com: Hunters’ Illegal Yellowstone Lion Kill Caught on Social Media Mountain Lion Found Dead in California May Have Been Poisoned Watch: Colorado Runner Who Killed Mountain Lion Describes Attack Source: https://ift.tt/2MqoyTk Droolin’ Dog sniffed out this story and shared it with you. The Article Was Written/Published By: Genevieve Scarano ! #Headlines, #Animals, #People, #TechNews, #Newsfeed, #syndicated, news https://ift.tt/2Z8PAFX
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