The puma hesitantly came forward, completely dissatisfied with my presence.He came to a stop, turned to face me again, and growled directly into my eyes after only a few minutes.As the puma leapt 10 feet into the air and ran toward me, I watched helplessly.His powerful legs wrapped around my waist, arms around my throat, and fangs pressed into my forehead in a split second.

I heard a member of my team scream.I couldn’t move, though.Still as a rock, I feared the worst.However, in some way, it seemed totally natural.Life’s cyclical nature.I started to lose consciousness as the scream diminished.After that, I was suddenly let go.The animal released me and retreated.

My teammate yelled, “stick your palm out towards him,” after my profuse swearing.I did, for some reason.The enormous cat turned away from me and licked it.That was it, then.He and I both knew who was the jungle king.We remained friends after that.

While eco-traveling, volunteering with animals is a great way to help others.If you don’t want to have bad travel experiences like mine, just choose locations with adequate training!