A 5-year-old Albuquerque boy hiking with his family near Sandia Peak has survived an attack from an unidentified large animal.
Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White said the family was hiking on a trail near the popular Balsam Glade area on the east side of the Sandia Mountains on Saturday evening when the boy ran ahead of his parents, who said they heard a scream.
The boy’s parents, Jose and Charlotte Salazar, then saw the animal emerge from the brush and start dragging away their child.
The father gave chase, and tried to jump on the animal’s back, and it let go of the child, identified in a sheriff’s department report as Jose Salazar Jr. The animal fled.
A University of New Mexico Hospital spokeswoman said Monday the parents did not want the boy’s condition disclosed. The boy, who suffered puncture wounds to his head, neck and back, was in serious condition Saturday at University of New Mexico Hospital, White said.
White said Sunday the animal was a mountain lion, but Ross Morgan, a spokesman for the state Department of Game and Fish, said dogs trained to track mountain lions picked up no scent in the area Saturday night or Sunday.