A man chased down and killed a cougar that had snatched his miniature dachshund puppy during a fishing trip in British Columbia. The cougar let go of the dog when the man punched the big cat in the face.
Shawn Hanson, of Vancouver Island, said he was on a beach near Ucluelet on July 3 with his friend Tara and his puppy Bailey preparing salmon that he recently caught when the cougar emerged from the bushes, grabbed the dog by the neck and took off with Bailey in its mouth,
reported CBC News.
Hanson gave chase and quickly caught up with the cougar still carrying the puppy. He gave the following account of the cat fight on his
Facebook page:
"I grab Bailey … with one hand, punch the cougar in the face with the other, and it releases its grip on her neck," said Hanson. "I run out of the bush holding the dog and handed her off to Tara."
Bailey had small puncture wounds from where the cougar grabbed her but was otherwise okay.
"I run to the truck and grab the 12-guage and a box of shells and head back into the bush after (the cougar)," he said.
Hanson faced off with the cougar again and fired a warning shot but the animal appeared to be "unfazed" and it started to move in his direction, he told
CTV News.
"It just kept staring at me," said Hanson. "I raised the rifle and waited a second. It took two more steps and I had to put the cougar down. It was pretty much over at that point."
Hanson said he contacted Royal Canadian Mounted Police and local conservation officers.
"… (Conservation officers) indicated that there is another even larger one in the area and to keep alert for it," said Hanson. "These guys are definitely hungry and not afraid of human contact. If they're willing to come up and snatch my dog that's only a foot away, they will attempt the same with a small child. We are just lucky I reacted so fast, didn't think twice, and had ready access to my rifle."
Conservation officer Brittany Mueller told CBC News that even though it is the busy cougar season, she recommended not taking them on because of "unpredictable risks."
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