A woman has been called a hero after fighting off a mountain lion that was attacking her five-year-old son. Her motherly instincts appeared as she dragged her little boy away from the big cat. She beat the wild animal with her fists in her garden, where her son had been playing. The boy suffered bites and cuts to his head and body after the lion pounced. He is now in a stable condition in a local hospital. He is expected to make a full recovery. A spokesperson from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife said the mother was a "true hero" for saving her son's life.

The mountain lion was a juvenile. It was less than a year old and was probably practising its hunting skills. Officials shot the lion near the boy's home after it was acting aggressively. The officials stated: "Wildlife forensics scientists analyzed samples from underneath the claws of the suspect lion carcass and isolated traces of human tissue and blood with a DNA profile that matched the [boy]." They said the results showed that it was the lion that attacked the boy. A different mountain lion was also found at the scene. It was shot with a non-lethal tranquilizer and then released.