How to avoid a Mountain Lion Attack

The likelihood of ever having an encounter with a mountain lion is pretty low, but in case you ever come across one in the wild you should know what to do. With the growing popularity of outdoor sports like mountain biking and hiking, wild animal encounters are on the rise.

So what should you do if you encounter a Mountain Lion?

1. To avoid attack, always keep children and teenagers close by. Mountain Lions are attracted to children so don’t let them wonder of to far away. They see the children as a small prey animal and are sometimes tempted to attack.
2. Make noise when your hiking, this will help to ensure that you don’t walk up on a unsuspecting lion. If a Mountain Lion hears you approaching, more often than not it will slip away into the brush to avoid a confrontation.
3. If you come upon a lion give it plenty of space so it can escape and get away. Make your self look Big and DO NOT RUN. The lion will more that likely leave without any kind of confrontation.
4. If you are attacked FIGHT LIKE HELL! Unlike with bear attacks, experts say that you should fight back when attacked by a Mountain Lion. Kick, Gouge its eyes, Hit it in the face, do anything you can to make the lion rethink its attack. If you try to pretend you are dead a lion will more than likely keep attacking.
5. Try to use Large sticks, rocks or any other weapon you can find to defend yourself.
6. Stand your ground, stand tall, and pick up children that are with you. Don’t ever try to run, doing so will kick in the animals natural hunting response. If you run it will chase!
7. Bear Pepper Spray is also useful against mountain lions. If you have some it can be sprayed at the lions nose and eyes.
8. Never squat or bend over, research shows that when a human bends over that mountain lions can mistake a person for a four legged prey.