The cougar that attacked a seven-year-old Port Alberni boy Wednesday night has been killed.
BC Conservation officers tracked the animal Thursday morning then shot and killed it at 5:45 a.m, . “They believe this was the animal that attacked the boy,” RCMP Watch Commander Const. Tracey Corner said.
BC Conservation Insp. Chris Doyle confirmed that an adult male cougar was killed. "A necropsy will be performed to determine its age, health and physical condition to find out why what happened 'happened'," Doyle said.
Tracking dogs didn't find any other fresh cougar scent in the area, he said. There have been 60 cougars sightings reported in Port Alberni since April but Doyle was uncertain if any of them were in the area of attack, he added.
RCMP responded to a call of a cougar attack at the Taylor Flats section of Sproat Lake between 8-8:30 p.m. on Wednesday night.
There, police found a seven-year-old boy who was attacked and mauled by a cougar. "His father heard him scream and he ran and fought the cat off," Doyle said.
The boy suffered significant injuries to his head and neck and was transported by BC Ambulance to West Coast General Hospital where he remains. According to Vancouver Island Health Authority spokesperson Anya Nimmon the boy is is stable condition. The family has requested privacy and won't be fielding any questions, Nimmon added.
The boy and his family had been camping in the area when the cougar attacked.
The incident is the second in a year on the West Coast involving a cougar attack.
In Oct. 2011 am 18-month-old boy was mauled by a cougar at Kennedy Lake.
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Updated to reflect the boy's condition.