A young California boy was at his big sister’s softball game when he was repeatedly bitten by a coyote that tried to drag him away.
On Monday night, six-year-old Enoch Palomar was with his family at Del Amo Park in Carson, where he split time between the playground and watching his sister play.
Midway through the game, Enoch was heard screaming as the coyote chased after him. A portion of the attack was recorded by a parent who was filming the game.
‘It just kept biting me and I was trying to kick it,’ Enoch told KTLA three days after the fact. ‘It was too fast and it just jumped. I was trying my hardest and then it didn’t work, and then I yelled.’
His mother, Melissa Palomar, ran over to her son and scared the coyote off, but not before it was able to bite him in multiple places.
‘I was like, “Get up, get up!” I was just hysterical,’ she said.
After the attack, the coyote was seen running away across the field.
Enoch needed 20 stiches for bites on his legs. He was also bitten on his head and back. As a precaution, he was also given rabies shots.
Six-year-old Enoch Palomar was repeatedly bitten by a coyote on Monday night while at his sister’s softball game in Carson, California
Pictured: Enoch’s leg bites, which needed stiches. The boy also got rabies shots out of precaution
Pictured: The coyote was seen running across the softball field after it attempted to drag the boy away
Enoch’s mother reported the attack to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), and the boy’s clothing was collected so officials could swab for DNA to track the coyote.
Melissa said the incident has left her terrified, mainly because of how shocking it was to see a coyote in such a crowded park.
‘I would never expect it,’ she said. ‘You’re at a park with a whole bunch of people. You don’t think a coyote would attack with a group of people around.’
Coyotes are common in Southern California, as they are in many other parts of the United States.
The canines are skittish and usually prefer to avoid interacting with humans, let alone attack them, according to the CDFW.
However, if you end up encountering an approaching coyote, there are things you can do to lower the chance of getting hurt.
CDFW officials advise citizens to make loud noise, make yourself look bigger by waving your arms and fight back if it comes at you.