An 8-year-old-boy was attacked by a mountain lion in Colorado. The animal is still on the loose

An 8-year-old boy was seriously injured in a mountain lion attack in a Colorado backyard, wildlife officials said Thursday

The boy was attacked Wednesday night in Bailey, located southwest of Denver, as he and his brother played in the yard, the Colorado Parks & Wildlife said in a news release.

Wildlife officers set a trap for the mountain lion and deployed a team of dogs to try to locate the animal. The dogs searched the area for about two hours but couldn’t pick up the lion’s scent to track it, wildlife officials said.

“Wildlife officers will be making every effort to locate the mountain lion from this attack on Thursday to ensure the safety of the public,” the release said.

Wildlife officials said the brothers were playing outside on the trampoline when the 8-year-old heard a friend calling him from the neighbor’s house. The lion attacked the child and bit him on his head as he ran to visit the friend, officials said.

The boy’s brother ran inside and told his father something sounded off.

“The father rushed outside and found the mountain lion on top of his son. The mountain lion let go of the child as the father approached and took off running,” the news release said.

The child was taken to the hospital, officials said.

It is unclear whether the animal is a male or female, according to wildlife officials.

The boy’s running likely triggered the lion’s “natural response to a prey animal running,” said Area Wildlife Manager Mark Lamb.

There have been 22 mountain lion attacks on humans in Colorado since 1990, including three fatalities, wildlife officials said. Three attacks have occurred this year including one on Aug. 10, northeast of Kremmling, wildlife officials said.

The mountain lion must be put down because it attacked a human causing an injury, officials said.