“Go away! I’m big and scary!” Burgess says among the exiles. “What’s up man? Good and slow.”
The agitated cat proceeds to follow Burgess for the next six minutes, while all the Burgesses scream and growl at the animal.
“Well, this is when I (the exterminator) dies,” he says. “Come on, man. I don’t feel like dying today.”
Throughout the video, Burgess never retreats from the beast as he pranks and puffs at him. At the end, he throws a rock at the lion of the mountain and he runs away, leaving him visibly relieved.
“Wow, it just happened,” Burgess said in the camera when he could finally rest. “I’m actually somewhat quiet. Yes, not going back this way.”
Burgess told the newspaper that when he returned to his car there was no sign of the mother and her cubs, and he was unwell after the dreaded orgy.
“My feelings were a gutsy mess,” he said. “So it was like … ‘K, well it’s one of two ways. What’s the result going to be?”
The following post offered suggestions should you have such an encounter of your own.
- Stop. Never run over a cougar and never approach a cougar.
- Maintain eye contact with animal
- Stand tall
- Do not crouch or squat
- Make yourself big by raising and waving your arms or jacket above your head.
- Talk loudly, slowly retreat, and leave the area
- Pick up children or pets or keep them very close
- If you are attacked then fight back! Protect your head and neck
The cougar is a protected species in Utah. They are usually shy.
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