Sometimes we have our readers to thank for some really interesting leads, and this latest story comes fresh from the Kruger National Park up north.

It involves a five-year-old boy being nabbed by a leopard at Ntsiri, a private reserve that shares an unfenced border with Kruger. This means the area is rich with game, including a healthy population of our feline friends.

Here’s what we know thus far about the incident which occurred on Tuesday of last week, at one of the privately owned residences on the reserve:

• A leopard approached a residence at around 1PM, grabbing a five-year-old on the shoulder.
• The boy and a friend were playing on a low wall that surrounds the house at the front of the unit at the time, and after one was grabbed the leopard dragged him 30m.
• The father of the boy was very close by and gave chase, shouting and screaming as he did so.
• A neighbour heard the commotion and ran out to help, as did another carrying an axe.
• The leopard dropped the boy and beat a hasty retreat, leaving the youngster with bite marks along his shoulder.

This tweet clearly shows the bitemarks:

I guess we can all just be thankful that the young man is OK, and will have one helluva story to tell for the rest of his life.

My advice is to add a little embellishment on every few years to keep the story fresh – I know a chap who was once bitten by a hyena and, depending on how many ales he had before the telling, the details tend to vary somewhat.

Here’s to a speedy recovery lad, and a few stiff drinks for those who gave chase and helped save his life.

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