California 5-year-old remains upbeat despite mountain lion attack: ‘His spirit remains intact’

A California child is recovering and in good spirits after a mountain lion attack sent him to the hospital.

Jack Trexler, 5, and his mother Suzie fought off a mountain lion while walking in Half Moon Bay, California on Tuesday in an attack that left the young boy with lacerations on face, a fracture near his eye, and scratches all over his body, according to a GoFundMe page.

Despite the injuries, Trexler’s family says “his spirit remains intact.”

The GoFundMe post states that the mother and son were walking in the hills by their home where they have lived for 12 years when Jack ran ahead of his mother and likely startled a juvenile mountain lion.

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The GoFundMe page credits Jack’s mother with charging the big cat causing it to run off before she scooped up her son and rushed him to safety.

Trexler’s father, Jay, said his son described the attack to him by saying, “Dad, a mountain lion tackled me!” 

The young boy was rushed to a nearby hospital after the attack where he “was examined with great care, stitched up and attended to by an incredible care team.”

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Trexler is now home recovering and waiting to see if the swelling from his wounds goes down which will determine if he needs further surgery.

“He is the most courageous, adventurous little guy I have ever met and I am not surprised that if there was a kid who could wrestle a mountain lion and come out on top, it would be Jack,” Amie Wagner, Jack’s aunt, wrote in the online post.

Jay Trexler says that his family will keep hiking around his California home once his son recovers.

“We are an outdoor-loving family, and this experience will not take that away from us,” Trexler said. “I think it’s important to not be afraid of mountain lions but to take care and be alert when you are in their habitat. Even though it doesn’t happen often, things like this can happen in an instant. You have to respect big animals that are capable of hurting you or your loved ones.”

“We are going to help our son recover and then go live our lives to the fullest.”

The GoFundMe page started in order to help the Trexler family with medical expenses has raised over $33,000.