IROQUOIS —Lee Carruthers’s near-death experience has renewed his faith in people and God.

He lost his son 12 years ago in a farming accident and suddenly, during the bull attack, he was struck with the thought that his son was at his side.

"I still say there was a guardian angel or someone else looking out for me," he said. "I did give up on God for awhile, ’cause I thought ‘why was my son taken before my time.’ But now I’ve left the past in the past and I do believe in God with all my heart and maybe it was my son as a guardian angel."

He added: "The thing is, in our life we always take things for granted and we never cherish the moments we have. I mean it really gives you a different outlook on life. I mean the people that are here to help you and friends and family, it touches your heart and makes you want to melt and cry."

                                                                                  ---------------------------------

By Andrea Ruttan

Lee Carruthers is lucky to be alive. Pinned and trampled by a 2,000-pound Holstein bull, the 52-year-old escaped the harrowing attack — but just barely.

With 10 cracked ribs (four of which are broken in four places), a collapsed lung, injuries to his abdomen, back and legs, Carruthers was very near death.

Carruthers chased them halfway down an alley when he came face to face with a very angry Holstein. "When I saw (the bull) coming, I was just stunned. He let out this giant roar, and just started charging towards me."

In a split second Carruthers realized the bull was attacking. He needed to find a way out and he needed to do it quickly. That’s when Carruthers believes adrenalin and his will to survive kicked in. Thinking fast, he attempted to lunge towards one of the fences that surrounded the pen.

"I was about halfway-up the wall when he caught me behind my legs and buttocks and flipped me backwards," he says.

He tumbled to the ground and the bull began stomping and pounding Carruthers’ body, pinning him with crushing weight to the fence.

"He was literally trying to kill me. I’ve never had that experience before but he was actually aiming to kill."

He was terrified but determined to survive. "All I could think about was how am I going to get out of here? That’s when I noticed the gap at the bottom of the pen."

Moving quickly, he tried to slide underneath the six-inch gap between the pen and the ground. Within minutes of making an attempt at escape, however, Carruthers realized to his horror that his body was too large to fit underneath.

Terrified, Carruthers continued his feeble attempts to dodge and thwart the bull. Even though the bull’s horns were removed, he was still able to use his scurrs (which are rudimentary or damaged horns) to viciously grind and ram Carruthers’ body deeper into the 6-inch gap.

Just as Carruthers began to lose hope of his survival, something remarkable happened.

"I’m pretty thick across the chest, maybe 10 or 12 inches, so there was no way I was going to fit underneath the gap," he says. "But he literally pounded me all the way through the 6-inch space," he explained, adding that the boards of the fence cracked due to the sheer force of the bull’s raging thrusts.

In a remarkable twist of fate, Carruthers’ life was once again in his own hands, and he continued to fight his way to safety.

Down on all fours and struggling to move and breathe, he used his remaining strength to crawl the length of the adjacent pen. Once he was across, he hoisted himself up and managed to stumble and crawl towards the office, where a co-worker called 911.

"The attack lasted probably between two to five minutes. But by the time I had crawled to the office it felt like an hour," he said.

In the aftermath that followed, Carruthers was rushed to the Ottawa Civic Hospital where he remained for five days. He was pleased and grateful for how caring and genuinely supportive the hospital staff were while he was in their care.

A week later, recovering at his Iroquois-area home with friends and family Carruthers believes his ordeal has deeply strengthened his connection to God and his resolve to appreciate life to its fullest. He emphasizes that there was no wrongdoing on the part of the sale barn and explains that there are inherent risks that come with working with animals, and that it is just part of the job. In this case, he believes "he was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time."

Carruthers plans to spend the next few months recovering and enjoying the simple things in life, such as his horses, his friends, and family.

He adds, "You never realize how many people really do care. I mean we were at the sale barn yesterday and some people came just to show their interest and support and it was just phenomenal. It just touches you to the bottom of your heart."