Adam Borkhus was driving along Deer Creek Trailhead near Cody, Wyoming, on Sep. 26, hoping to photograph elk when his afternoon took a dangerous turn — a mountain lion attacked his Labrador, Diesel, and then turned on him.
Borkhus said he had made the drive out to the trailhead with Diesel, as he often does.
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"I went out to see if there were any elk down running and I could get some cool pictures. It was raining so I thought the lighting would be cool."
When something near the creek caught his attention, he went to investigate.
"I went down there and there was a juvenile cat on top of him."
That "cat" was a young mountain lion attacking Diesel. Not wanting to risk shooting his dog, Borkhus kicked the animal.
"I didn't want to shoot my dog, so I kicked it. Once I kicked it, it pounced on me and we tussled for a sec."
The Army veteran said instinct took over as he fought to protect himself before the mountain lion fled.
"I was trying to keep his mouth away from my neck and face. I think it was just as panicked as I was."
Borkhus said the entire encounter lasted less than 30 seconds.
"It was so fast I didn't even have time to really realize what happened."
Despite the intensity of the fight, Borkhus walked away with only a few scratches.
"I was surprised they weren't deeper. I was expecting stitches. And I was like, you know, this is like a glorified house cat."
Diesel was luckier, making it out without any wounds to speak of. After the encounter, the dog ran straight back to the car, according to Borkhus.
"Diesel went back to the car and waited for me to get back up there and just kind of had a look like, 'We should go.'"
Christine Welch, who knows Borkhus, said the encounter was not surprising to those close to him.
"He's a very protective person…like, that's a very Adam thing to happen," said Adam's girlfiend of almost two years, Christine Welch.
According to the Cowboy State Daily, Wyoming Game and Fish investigators believe the encounter was likely a surprise that caused defensive behavior from the mountain lion. Officers searched the area but never found the animal and say they will continue to monitor.
Despite the scary experience, Borkhus says he and Diesel will continue to go back to doing what they love.
