# Mountain lion that attacks a 10 year old boy has rabies.



## ZEKE (Mar 15, 2008)

my dad was telling me about this so i had to find the story and post it.


<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.azfamily.com/news/homepagetopstory/stories/phoenix_local_news_031008_lion_attack.3ebcd2fc.html">http://www.azfamily.com/news/homepageto ... cd2fc.html</a><!-- m --> 


UPDATE:
A mountain lion that attacked a 10-year-old boy near the Verde River tested positive for rabies Sunday, the Arizona Department of Health Services reported Monday.

The boy and several others who may have been exposed to the cat will undergo preventative rabies treatment.

ORIGINAL REPORT:
PHOENIX - Paul John Schalow was spending Saturday camping and riding his ATV with his family in Tonto National Forest.

That's when he said the unthinkable happened.

Boy recalls up-close encounter

"My cousin was looking at it," he said. "I looked at her face and it's all funny so I turned around and I see it ... then it put its paw on me, scratched my back and tried biting my head."

Paul and his family claim he was suddenly attacked by a mountain lion.

"They thought it was just going to walk away from us, but then it came after me," he said.

The boy's uncle was nearby and shot the cat dead and Paul walked away with only a few minor scratches.

The family brought the carcass of the cat back home and called wildlife officials.

"Our primary focus is to ensure we get this lion down to the state health department to ensure the proper testing takes place and the safety of this little boy is assured," a wildlife official said.

But as of right now, Paul seems to be doing just fine and the Valley family has one heck of a story to tell.


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here is the interview with the grandpa. he gives a more detailed account of what happened than the story or the interview with the kid.


<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.azfamily.com/video/3tvextra-index.html?nvid=225836">http://www.azfamily.com/video/3tvextra- ... vid=225836</a><!-- m -->


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## Mvskokee (Mar 15, 2008)

dang


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## DZLife (Mar 15, 2008)

Sounds like the cat wasn't aggressive at all, and was in fact just being experimental with the boy...too bad they had to shoot it...I mean I don't blame them for doing so, but it's still too bad.


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## ColdThirst (Mar 16, 2008)

That family was retarted, lets walk up to and pet it? Then oh wait not its trying to eat us so we shoot it. They should be brought up on charges for that. If not for killing the lion, then at least Wreckless Endangerment of a Minor.


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## ZEKE (Mar 16, 2008)

ColdThirst did you watch the movies and everything? they didnt try to go towards it and pet it at all. they were all hanging out and the lion came up to the small kids and the adults told the kids to stay still and the lion would leave. then the lion tried to bite the kids head. thats when they shot it.


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## nat (Mar 16, 2008)

cougar attacks are not unheard of around my parts. When my sister was little a cougar stalked her (step dad had to shoot at it to get it to move on). The only time you really see cougars around here is if they are stalking you for food. I love cougars but if you put me in the same situation, I would shoot to.


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## ColdThirst (Mar 16, 2008)

Oh I just skimmed it and thats what It got out of it, same thing /i saw haha


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## ZEKE (Mar 16, 2008)

ooh. lol ok. if you watch the video of the grandpa he tells the whole story with detail.


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## DZLife (Mar 16, 2008)

I don't know that he did the right thing by telling the kids to stay still, but he doesn't seem incompetent to me.


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## nat (Mar 16, 2008)

DZLife said:


> I don't know that he did the right thing by telling the kids to stay still, but he doesn't seem incompetent to me.



the thing to do when a cougar is standing you down is to get the kids up or behind you, and to stare the cougar down in the eyes. As the cougar was stalking the kids as prey, running or sudden movements would trigger the predator response.


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## DZLife (Mar 17, 2008)

nat said:


> DZLife said:
> 
> 
> > I don't know that he did the right thing by telling the kids to stay still, but he doesn't seem incompetent to me.
> ...



that sounds about right. I know that with other big cats it is CRUCIAL to maintain a dominant status. If you slip below alpha even for a small while, you could be in serious trouble. I assume that it is the same for a Cougar.


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## nat (Mar 17, 2008)

DZLife said:


> that sounds about right. I know that with other big cats it is CRUCIAL to maintain a dominant status. If you slip below alpha even for a small while, you could be in serious trouble. I assume that it is the same for a Cougar.



yup that's right. People get confused between bears and cougars. You don't want to look a bear in the face and threaten it because most of the time, bears accidentally stumble into you, and presenting yourself as a threat puts it in defense mode. Cougars on the other hand, if you see them, they most likely were stalking you for food and you want to make yourself look like a hard fight... make them think you are more trouble then your worth in meat. At least that's what we are taught around here.


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## DZLife (Mar 17, 2008)

nat said:


> DZLife said:
> 
> 
> > that sounds about right. I know that with other big cats it is CRUCIAL to maintain a dominant status. If you slip below alpha even for a small while, you could be in serious trouble. I assume that it is the same for a Cougar.
> ...



lol, I had to apply that to a feral cat that I had some years ago. crazy cat...


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## Lexi (Mar 17, 2008)

Hahaaha was the Feral cat trying to eat you DZ?


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## DZLife (Mar 17, 2008)

yes. she was stalking me. she liked to attack people.


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## Lexi (Mar 17, 2008)

LOL im just picturing it in my head.


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## Mike (Mar 17, 2008)

I just wish they wouldn't kill the mountain lion.


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## ZEKE (Mar 17, 2008)

well in the end it was probably good that they did. the lion tested positive for rabies.


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