Red, a cross between a German Ridgeback Shepherd, is lucky to be alive after her owner’s father battled a cougar that attacked the nine-year-old dog last week.
Ian Orser, a plumber from Grand Forks, British Columbia, was working in a residential area near Lake Christina on April 9 when he and his 40-year-old daughter Megan heard the commotion, including howls.
“At first we thought it was a dog fight. My daughter went down there and she just shouted, “This is a cougar!” He told CBC Radio West presenter Sarah Penton.
He said he ran to see Red’s head in the cougar’s mouth.
“The only thing I could think of was kicking him in the head,” said Orser, 69.
“If I had thought about it, I probably wouldn’t have escaped there. But I just had to save our dog.”
Some of the injuries Red received during the cougar attack. (Ian Orser)
Orser’s blow worked and the cougar backed away – but it didn’t get far.
Orser says he then swung a stick at the big cat, but she still hasn’t escaped. He and his daughter then grabbed Red and the other two dogs with them and jumped into his truck to reach the vet.
Red received medical attention, and Orser said he was fine now. But he said that if one of his other dogs – both Springer Spaniels – had been in this situation, it would have been much worse.
“I think they would be dead because they are much smaller,” he said.
Orser reported the incident to security officials. The BC Conservation Service confirmed that they had received several reports of a cougar in the residential area.
Officers tracked down the animal and dumped it due to danger to the public.
Radio West5: 30 A man from Grand Forks had to kick a cougar in the head to free the family dog from his mouth in a residential area on Lake Christina
A Grand Forks man had to kick a cougar in the head to free the family dog from his mouth in a residential area on Lake Christina 5:30
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