Man Survives Mountain Lion Attack After Rescue by Mother Bear

Hiker attacked by mountain lion survives thanks to help from bear

It was lions and bears, but no tigers for a 69-year-old Nevada man attacked by a mountain lion, but saved by a bear while hiking last Monday.

Robert Biggs told the Paradise Post that he came across a mother bear and her two young cubs during a hiking trip near Whiskey Flats last week. About 40 feet away, he decided to play it safe and turn back when a mountain lion bounced on his backpack.

"They usually grab hold of your head with all four paws, but my backpack was up above my head and (the mountain lion) grabbed it instead," Biggs told the Post. "It must have been stalking the little bear, but it was on me in seconds."

Taking a page out of an action film, Biggs wrestled with the feline and managed to stab it with a rock pick. That didn't stop the cat, who refused to let go. Soon after, Biggs was saved by the mother bear he was walking away from. After a 15-second encounter between the two animals the cat ran off, Biggs said.

Biggs was left scratched, bitten and bruised, but was left without any serious injuries, the Post reported.

He said this wasn't the first time he'd seen the bear and its cubbies. Back in the fall and last spring the mother even let him touch one of the cubs.

"(The cub) stood up on its hind legs and put its paws up and I got to play patty-cake with it," he told the paper.

Contact Us