Cat dispatch wrote:
If your knife is under 8 inches long you won't be able to reach the lion's heart, and if you did it wouldn't kill it it would just tickle it. You wouldn't be able to slash the jugular either as it's muscles are too tight. You might be able to pierce the jugular if you were a surgeon or had an unusually thin knife. But the length of the blade is what is needed to reach through the heart. A woman survived an attack using a 12 inch butter knife. Otherwise your thumb is the best right above the collarbone in the soft spot of their neck.
The knife I carry is a 12", lightweight kitchen knife. I discussed this with a wildlife agent after my confrontation and his opinion was that cats are extremely averse to puncture wounds of any kind (unlike bears, who would likely just get madder) and would flee with a stabbing defense of any forcefulness. I have also carried pepper spray in the past, but the first notice of an attack is often that the cat is already upon you (usually from behind, as was the case in my face-off).
In any case, the #1 survival tip is if confronted, don't break eye contact or you are toast. I managed to stare it down for 10+ minutes before backing off slowly with a rock in hand as it was getting dark. This occured about 15 miles from the fatal Snoqualmie attack last summer. Heads up to anyone who frequents the Tiger/Cougar Mt. trails!