Tiger attack at the San Franciso zoo
How in the F did a tiger get out and no one knew it?
Dean.
By LOUISE CHU, Associated Press Writer
26 minutes ago
SAN FRANCISCO - Investigators trying to determine how a tiger escaped its zoo enclosure on Christmas Day - killing one man and mauling two others - plan a thorough sweep of the zoo grounds Wednesday to look for clues.
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Authorities do not believe more people were attacked, but they want to inspect the area in the daylight. Zoo officials are still uncertain how long the tiger, which last year badly mauled a zookeeper, was loose before being shot dead.
The three men who were attacked Tuesday while visiting the zoo were in their 20s, police spokesman Steve Mannina said. The attack occurred just after the 5 p.m. closing time, on the east end of the 125-acre grounds.
They suffered "pretty aggressive bite marks," Mannina said.
The two injured men were listed in stable condition at San Francisco General Hospital. Dr. John Brown, an emergency room physician, told ABC's "Good Morning America" on Wednesday they suffered deep bites and claw cuts to their heads, necks, arms and hands.
"These injuries are severe injuries, but they are very treatable," Brown said, "and these two gentlemen seem to be in good health, so I think they have a good chance."
The Siberian tiger, named Tatiana, was the same giant cat that attacked a zookeeper just about a year ago during a public feeding, said Robert Jenkins, the zoo's director of animal care and conservation.
The approximately 300-pound female did not leave through an open door, Jenkins said. But he could not explain how it escaped - the tiger's enclosure is surrounded by a 15-foot-wide moat and 20-foot-high walls.
"There was no way out through the door," Jenkins said. "The animal appears to have climbed or otherwise leapt out of the enclosure."
The first attack happened right outside the Siberian's enclosure - the victim died at the scene. A group of four responding officers came across his body when they made their way into the dark zoo grounds, Mannina said.
Then they saw the second victim. He was about 300 yards away, in front of the Terrace Cafe.
The man was sitting on the ground, blood running from gashes in his head. Tatiana sat next to him. Suddenly, the cat attacked the man again, Mannina said.
The officers started approaching the tiger, bearing their handguns. Tatiana started moving in their direction. Several of the officers then fired, killing the animal.
Only then did they see the third victim, who had also been mauled.
The zoo is open 365 days a year. Although no new visitors were let in after 5 p.m., the grounds were not scheduled to close until an hour later, and there were between 20 and 25 people still on site when the attacks happened, zoo officials said. Employees and visitors were told to take shelter when zoo officials learned of the attacks.
"This is a tragic event for San Francisco," Fire Department spokesman Lt. Ken Smith said. "We pride ourselves in our zoo, and we pride ourselves in tourists coming and looking at our city."
There are five tigers at the zoo - three Sumatrans and two Siberians. Officials initially worried that four tigers had escaped, but soon learned only one had escaped its pen, Mannina said.
On Dec. 22, 2006, Tatiana reached through the cage's iron bars and attacked a keeper with her claws and teeth, causing deep lacerations to the worker's arms. The zoo's Lion House was temporarily closed during an investigation.
California's Division of Occupational Safety and Health blamed the zoo for the assault and imposed a $18,000 penalty. A medical claim filed against the city by the keeper was denied.
Mayor Gavin Newsom said in a statement he was deeply saddened by the latest attack and that a thorough investigation was under way.
After last year's attack, the zoo added customized steel mesh over the bars, built in a feeding shoot and increased the distance between the public and the cats.
Tatiana arrived at the San Francisco Zoo from the Denver Zoo a few years ago, with zoo officials hoping she would mate with a male tiger. Siberian tigers are classified as endangered and there are more than 600 of the animals living in captivity worldwide.
The zoo will be closed Wednesday.
___
Associated Press writer Daisy Nguyen in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
Dean.
By LOUISE CHU, Associated Press Writer
26 minutes ago
SAN FRANCISCO - Investigators trying to determine how a tiger escaped its zoo enclosure on Christmas Day - killing one man and mauling two others - plan a thorough sweep of the zoo grounds Wednesday to look for clues.
ADVERTISEMENT
Authorities do not believe more people were attacked, but they want to inspect the area in the daylight. Zoo officials are still uncertain how long the tiger, which last year badly mauled a zookeeper, was loose before being shot dead.
The three men who were attacked Tuesday while visiting the zoo were in their 20s, police spokesman Steve Mannina said. The attack occurred just after the 5 p.m. closing time, on the east end of the 125-acre grounds.
They suffered "pretty aggressive bite marks," Mannina said.
The two injured men were listed in stable condition at San Francisco General Hospital. Dr. John Brown, an emergency room physician, told ABC's "Good Morning America" on Wednesday they suffered deep bites and claw cuts to their heads, necks, arms and hands.
"These injuries are severe injuries, but they are very treatable," Brown said, "and these two gentlemen seem to be in good health, so I think they have a good chance."
The Siberian tiger, named Tatiana, was the same giant cat that attacked a zookeeper just about a year ago during a public feeding, said Robert Jenkins, the zoo's director of animal care and conservation.
The approximately 300-pound female did not leave through an open door, Jenkins said. But he could not explain how it escaped - the tiger's enclosure is surrounded by a 15-foot-wide moat and 20-foot-high walls.
"There was no way out through the door," Jenkins said. "The animal appears to have climbed or otherwise leapt out of the enclosure."
The first attack happened right outside the Siberian's enclosure - the victim died at the scene. A group of four responding officers came across his body when they made their way into the dark zoo grounds, Mannina said.
Then they saw the second victim. He was about 300 yards away, in front of the Terrace Cafe.
The man was sitting on the ground, blood running from gashes in his head. Tatiana sat next to him. Suddenly, the cat attacked the man again, Mannina said.
The officers started approaching the tiger, bearing their handguns. Tatiana started moving in their direction. Several of the officers then fired, killing the animal.
Only then did they see the third victim, who had also been mauled.
The zoo is open 365 days a year. Although no new visitors were let in after 5 p.m., the grounds were not scheduled to close until an hour later, and there were between 20 and 25 people still on site when the attacks happened, zoo officials said. Employees and visitors were told to take shelter when zoo officials learned of the attacks.
"This is a tragic event for San Francisco," Fire Department spokesman Lt. Ken Smith said. "We pride ourselves in our zoo, and we pride ourselves in tourists coming and looking at our city."
There are five tigers at the zoo - three Sumatrans and two Siberians. Officials initially worried that four tigers had escaped, but soon learned only one had escaped its pen, Mannina said.
On Dec. 22, 2006, Tatiana reached through the cage's iron bars and attacked a keeper with her claws and teeth, causing deep lacerations to the worker's arms. The zoo's Lion House was temporarily closed during an investigation.
California's Division of Occupational Safety and Health blamed the zoo for the assault and imposed a $18,000 penalty. A medical claim filed against the city by the keeper was denied.
Mayor Gavin Newsom said in a statement he was deeply saddened by the latest attack and that a thorough investigation was under way.
After last year's attack, the zoo added customized steel mesh over the bars, built in a feeding shoot and increased the distance between the public and the cats.
Tatiana arrived at the San Francisco Zoo from the Denver Zoo a few years ago, with zoo officials hoping she would mate with a male tiger. Siberian tigers are classified as endangered and there are more than 600 of the animals living in captivity worldwide.
The zoo will be closed Wednesday.
___
Associated Press writer Daisy Nguyen in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
0
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quote:Originally posted by Spider7115
I just heard on the news that the men may have been taunting the tiger relentlessly and they think the tiger hunted them down when he got out.
I see a movie deal...[8D]0 -
quote:Originally posted by cartod
quote:Originally posted by Spider7115
I just heard on the news that the men may have been taunting the tiger relentlessly and they think the tiger hunted them down when he got out.
I see a movie deal...[8D]
"Guess who's coming to dinner"?
0 -
Also being reported that someone may have let the tiger out.
Wouldn't surprise me with the brain dead azzhats we have around today.
Maybe someone wanting to shoot a vid to put on You Tube for laughs.
Should have let the cat eat em.0 -
maybe they were teasing it and somebody let it out. 0 -
quote:Originally posted by rcrxs old lady
I've never been to the San Francisco Zoo so I do not know the layout, but why would it be inconcievable to think that a cat of that size could not leap/swim (yes, they can swim) across a 15 foot moat, or scale a 20 foot fence (unless it is electric)?
Your average house cat can easilly broad leap or high jump that to their own scale of body size.Each one alone would probably be no problem for a tiger, but you'd think these two in the right proximity would do the trick.
I'd like to hear what the cops used to put it down.0 -
Bob Beamon jumped 8.90 meters (29 feet, 2-1/2 inches) at the 1968 Summer Olympics. 0 -
Could have been worse... 0 -
I'm writing this from memory -- the books I read belong to my dad and are 1600 miles away -- but I recall reading, in one of Peter Capstick's books ("Death In The Long Grass"?), that African natives surround their villages with thorn-bush walls over a dozen feet high. According to Capstick this basically serves to discourage the lazier lions, but does zilch to stop a healthy cat that wants into the buffet badly enough. Realizing, before anyone politely points it out, that lions and tigers (and bears, oh my) are different animals, if a full-grown African lion can fairly easily clear a twelve-foot-plus thorn wall, I wouldn't at this point be too positively saying that a tiger, especially if it's been tormented, just flat-out couldn't make the jump over the wall and moat described in the story.
Thing about it is, until an animal proves it can clear an obstacle, by doing it -- the best we can do is assume (or hope), with varying degrees of certainty, that it can't. Maybe what the zookeepers in SF are finding out, like it or not, is simply that up to this point none of the tigers wanted to badly enough.
I watched two Bengal tigers playing in their cage, once upon a time. They were doing the housecat-thing where one rushed the other, and the other leaped straight up and came down on its playmate's back as it passed underneath. Only thing was, the one leaping -- I was close enough to the cage to have to look up as it came to the top of its jump. I'm a few inches shy of six feet, so that's not really a big deal, but the cat put so little effort into going up, it looked almost like it was floating. So, again, give one enough incentive to jump a wall....
Be interesting to see how this plays out.0 -
quote:Originally posted by Spider7115
quote:Originally posted by cartod
quote:Originally posted by Spider7115
I just heard on the news that the men may have been taunting the tiger relentlessly and they think the tiger hunted them down when he got out.
I see a movie deal...[8D]
"Guess who's coming FOR dinner"?
Fixed it for you.[:o)]0 -
It's been awhile, but the moat is a good 5-7ft deep, a good 15ft across, and was filled with water. Then there's a concrete wall that rises another 12-15ft off the water and topped with a 3ft iron bar fence. It would be a world class jump for any animal to make.
The two that were injured were at SF General last night when I delivered there, and they'll be there for a while, they got shredded up pretty bad.0 -
the news said the deceased was a teen boy. the seriously injured was also a teen boy. i think the tiger was upset over being caged its entire life and wanted to whoop some ass 0 -
Trail of blood apparently led escaped tiger to victims
Kevin Fagan, Jaxon Van Derbeken, Steve Rubenstein,Cecilia M. Vega, Chronicle Staff Writers
Thursday, December 27, 2007
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S.F. Zoo Mauling
Tiger apparently followed blood trail
Victim's parents in shock
Outrage at S.F. City Hall
Tiger acted her part as alpha predator
Oakland Zoo visitors flock to see tigers
San Jose boy, 17, fatally mauled
Tiger kills one visitor, injures two others
Video: Authorities at zoo
List of maulings by captive animals
S.F. zookeeper attacked by tiger (12/23/06)
Video | Photos | Map
San Francisco police are investigating the possibility that one of the victims in the fatal tiger mauling on Christmas Day climbed over a waist-high fence and then dangled a leg or other body part over the edge of a moat that kept the big cat away from the public, sources close to the investigation said Wednesday.
The minimal evidence found at the scene included a shoe and blood in an area between the gate and the edge of the 25- to 30-foot-wide moat, raising questions about what role, if any, the victims might have had in accidentally helping the animal escape.
The three victims, all young men from San Jose, were visiting the zoo together. They were all present just outside the tiger's grotto when the tiger escaped, killed 17-year-old Carlos Sousa Jr. with a savage slash to the throat, and injured the other two. The names of the survivors, who are brothers ages 19 and 23, have not been released.
The injured victims fled, leaving a trail of blood, which police believe the tiger followed for 300 yards up a zoo pathway. As the tiger cornered and attacked one of the brothers, four police officers arrived, distracted the animal and shot it dead.
What followed were hours of confusion as police attempted to find other tigers that zookeepers believed might have escaped.
When police arrived at the zoo, they were hampered by a lack of emergency lights, video surveillance cameras and maps. They didn't know how many animals might be on the loose or how many victims might have been injured.
And though they found and killed the escaped tiger within minutes of their arrival, they had been told three other tigers might be on the loose.
Zoo officials said they are trying to figure out how the 4-year-old Siberian tiger named Tatiana escaped from her enclosure shortly after the zoo's 5 p.m. closing time, while there were still many visitors walking around the zoo. No doors to the grotto had been left ajar, they said. The animal is the same one that attacked a zookeeper almost exactly a year ago.
Police sources said a footprint had been found on a metal fence, suggesting that someone had climbed the fence to get closer to the big cats. Authorities were looking into whether the tiger escaped by latching on to a leg or body part.
Zoo director Manuel Mollinedo said it was also likely that the animal was provoked.
"Somebody created a situation that really agitated her and gave her some sort of a method to break out," Mollinedo said. "There is no possible way the cat could have made it out of there in a single leap. I would surmise that there was help.
"A couple of feet dangling over the edge could possibly have done it."
Sources said pinecones and sticks that were found in the moat might have been thrown at the animal. Those items could not have landed in the grotto naturally, they said.
However, police Sgt. Neville Gittens maintained that there was no reason to think that the victims were taunting the tiger.
The two survivors were in serious but stable condition Wednesday following surgery at San Francisco General Hospital, doctors said.
The zoo, which closed Wednesday, will remain shut today so that police could continue their investigation. Mollinedo said he hopes the zoo will reopen Friday, but the tigers and lions will not be on display for at least a week.
The hunt for the escaped tiger Tuesday was chaotic, with police and paramedics frantically scrambling through the 1,000-acre zoo grounds to locate victims after discovering Sousa's body.
There are no surveillance cameras pointed at the big cats' grottos, so officers could not find out from zoo guards which animal or animals had escaped. Initial calls for help didn't say what sort of animal had escaped, sources said. The lack of cameras also has made it difficult to ascertain how the attacks occurred.
Police said the investigation will focus on physical evidence collected at the zoo, witness statements, an autopsy of the victim and the necropsy of the tiger.
New cameras and a metal barrier will be installed to protect the public from the tigers and lions, Mollinedo said.
As darkness deepened Tuesday, officers found the zoo lighting was insufficient to illuminate the trees, foliage and public areas where they feared that more animals might be lurking or more victims might be found. Firefighters standing on tall ladders outside the zoo illuminated the grounds with portable lights to help the search.
"We didn't know how many tigers were out," Mollinedo said. "I (was) under the impression we had two or three cats escaping. There was a sense of paranoia around here."
Investigators canvassed the zoo for hours Wednesday morning before finally determining that nobody else had been hurt.
A Fire Department source said three paramedics found Sousa's body Tuesday, with a wide gash across the neck, lying near the grotto. The enclosure is separated from the public by a 25- to 30-foot-wide moat - a trench that is 14 feet deep.
The paramedics and an ambulance driver were told of additional victims outside the Terrace Cafe restaurant, about 300 yards east. When they arrived, they found the tiger standing over one of the brothers.
The paramedics and driver were soon joined by the four police officers, who distracted the tiger with the red lights of their two patrol cars before shooting her to death with their .40-caliber handguns.
Gittens said the officers did not want to shoot the animal while she was sitting next to the victim.
"I can only imagine the patrons walking around, and suddenly seeing this tiger," he said. "It was probably surreal."
Police were treating the zoo as a crime scene Wednesday. Yellow police tape surrounded the area near the cafe where the animal was slain.
It's not known why the tiger singled out the three visitors or why she tracked down the two wounded victims, apparently ignoring other zoo patrons.
Rochelle Dicker, an emergency room surgeon at San Francisco General Hospital who operated on the victims, said Wednesday that the two survivors were recovering remarkably well. They were awake and stable, Dicker said.
Doctors are focusing on preventing infection from the bacteria that might be present in the men's wounds, she said. Those bacteria are similar to the type found in the common house cat, officials said.
The zoo was eerily quiet on the day after the tragedy. The cafe where the attack victims were found was shuttered and still, and a dozen police officers gathered with zoo officials nearby, poring over maps and handing out equipment. Zookeepers held a staff meeting and also met with grief counselors.
Visitors continued to filter up to the entrance, unaware of what had happened.
"Oh my gosh! I hadn't heard anything about a tiger," said one visitor, Komer Poodari of San Jose. "I guess we'll go to Fisherman's Wharf."
Mollinedo said that the zoo has a response team armed with tranquilizers and firearms, but that the scene unfolded "so quickly that the officers found (Tatiana) first."
This is the second time in just over a year that this same tiger attacked a human.
On Dec. 22, 2006, Tatiana chewed the flesh off zookeeper Lori Komejan's arm in front of about 50 visitors lingering in the Lion House after the cats were fed. A state investigation later ruled that the zoo was at fault for the attack because of the way the cages were configured.
"There was never any consideration for putting her down. The tiger was acting like a normal tiger," Mollinedo said.
The public feeding demonstrations at the Lion House resumed in September after about $250,000 in safety upgrades. The city, which helps fund the zoo, has been sued by Komejan and is assessing whether it is liable for the Christmas Day mauling.
Mollinedo has brought in colleagues from other accredited zoos to do a thorough analysis of the big cat exhibits.
"We want to make sure they are safe and see what kind of modifications should be done to ensure the safety" of people and animals, he said.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture will "in most likelihood" investigate the zoo's tiger facility, said agency spokesman Jim Brownlee. Inspectors from the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, which oversees the nation's zoos, will "probably be on location very soon," Brownlee said Wednesday night. "We would look at the whole situation in a comprehensive manner," he said.
Keepers at other U.S. zoos said they were waiting for more details about the San Francisco attack before deciding whether to change their tiger enclosures or security procedures. Moats and sheer walls are common methods of protecting visitors from large animals at outdoor zoo exhibits.
"We still don't know what happened," said Tony Vecchio, director of the Oregon Zoo in Portland. "We know what animals can do, and we build barriers that are taller and wider than that. But one of the rules in the zoo business is that animals will always surprise you."
S.F. Zoo incidents
Dec. 25, 2007: A Siberian tiger named Tatiana escapes and kills a 17-year-old San Jose boy and injures two brothers.
Dec. 22, 2006: Tatiana attacks and mauls zookeeper Lori Komejan, causing deep lacerations to her arms.
February 2001: A zoo employee is attacked and injured by the claws of a cassowary, a 5-foot-tall, 80-pound bird native to New Zealand.
November 1994: Two Patas monkeys escape from the Primate Discovery Center. The monkeys are about 15 inches high and weigh around 35 pounds.
May 1990: Veteran zookeeper Alan Feinberg is attacked and bitten by a 90-pound Persian leopard as a crowd of schoolchildren watches in horror. The keeper is treated for deep wounds to his head and neck.
February 1990: A keeper suffers a lower back fracture after being knocked into a 10-foot-deep moat by Tinkerbelle, a 7,000-pound elephant.
October 1988: Tinkerbelle attacks animal health technician Gail Hedberg, who was treating the elephant for an abscess on its cheek. The elephant knocks the technician down and does a headstand on her. Hedberg suffers a crushed pelvis.
July 1985: Two Patas monkeys escape from the zoo and remain at large for six weeks before being recaptured behind the University of California medical complex on Mount Sutro.
April 1980: Five female City College students are caught fording the moat around Monkey Island. Police officers find a dead spider monkey in a duffel bag floating in the moat. The women are later given suspended jail sentences and six months' probation.
January 1979: A male Indian elephant injures keepers, knocking one into the moat.
November 1976: A 175-pound South American jaguar escapes from the zoo's animal hospital, where it was recovering from cracked footpads. Zoo director Saul Kitchener fells the animal, named Buster, with a dart from a tranquilizer gun
February 1976: An antelope leaps over a damaged fence and knocks a visitor to the ground, causing head injuries.
March 1972: A 3-year-old girl suffers a broken jaw and deep facial cuts when a camel leans over a fence and bites the child in the face. It drags her over the fence and tramples her.
March 1971: A 300-pound female tapir escapes from her compound and is found wandering on Sloat Boulevard. The tapir bounds over two police cars, denting both, and then knocks a police officer to the ground.
August 1969: An escaped chimpanzee bites two keepers.
April 1968: Amos Watson, a visitor, is mauled by a 450-pound lion, suffering puncture wounds over most of his body. Watson had climbed over a rail and tumbled into the moat. The lion is killed by one shot from a keeper's rifle.
August 1967: Zookeeper Robert Caldwell is badly bitten by a 400-pound orangutan. He was alone near the Great Ape Grotto when Big Red, the male orangutan, reached under the mesh-covered bars and grabbed Caldwell's left arm, pulling it into the cage. Then Linda, a female orangutan, chewed on the keeper's arm.
November 1962: May, a 6,000-pound elephant, attacks her keeper, battering him with her trunk and butting him with her head.
December 1960: A 500-pound lion reaches between the bars of its cage and hooks the arm of a keeper, who has to undergo two hours of surgery for his injuries.
May 1960: A 125-pound black leopard attacks a keeper who had been feeding the animal.
March 1949: A polar bear reaches through the bars of its cage and hooks a visitor's arm.
Source: Chronicle research0 -
Do you think the tiger was "Homophobic"?
Dean
quote:Originally posted by Civil Rights
the news said the deceased was a teen boy. the seriously injured was also a teen boy. i think the tiger was upset over being caged its entire life and wanted to whoop some ass0 -
tigers don't belong in cages or zoo's but thanks to ignorant trigger happy human beings it may be the only place they have left. stay clear of the cage they have been left with 0 -
quote:Originally posted by Civil Rights
the news said the deceased was a teen boy. the seriously injured was also a teen boy. i think the tiger was upset over being caged its entire life and wanted to whoop some ass
That is more than just a little anthropomorphic. Cats simply are not capable of building and nursing a lifelong resentment. They don't have to, they are top predators that see humans as food.0 -
Teen aged boys do some stupid stuff, just ask my mother!
It would not surprise me at all if these guys had been taunting the tiger.
Teen aged boys who survive to adulthood learn the lesson, "Mess with the bull, you get the horn."0 -
quote:Originally posted by Dean Cascio
Do you think the tiger was "Homophobic"?
Dean
quote:Originally posted by Civil Rights
the news said the deceased was a teen boy. the seriously injured was also a teen boy. i think the tiger was upset over being caged its entire life and wanted to whoop some ass
It took me a minute.
ouch.0 -
quote:Originally posted by He Dog
quote:Originally posted by Civil Rights
the news said the deceased was a teen boy. the seriously injured was also a teen boy. i think the tiger was upset over being caged its entire life and wanted to whoop some ass
That is more than just a little anthropomorphic. Cats simply are not capable of building and nursing a lifelong resentment. They don't have to, they are top predators that see humans as food.
they are second place as far as predators go. the people with guns are ahead of them.0 -
the news said the deceased was a teen boy. the seriously injured was also a teen boy. i think the tiger was upset over being caged its entire life and wanted to whoop some ass
I don't know about all that, but they were saying there was pine cones and sticks and stuff in the moat, any animal could grow to resent being teased all the time and get mean.. then, well, ya get what you got here today.0 -
It is my understanding that this zoo was built in the 40 s and has been housing these big cats for well over 60 years.
I also think that these kids were probabaly tuanting the animal like many of you have already suggested because keep in mind these animals are well fed and its just unlikely that one would even bother trying to escape unless it was provoked! I also think you will find that the so called 20 foot high fence is actually only about 12 1/2 feet tall. The animal probabally could have gotten out any time it wanted to but never had a reason until somone ticked it off ! I dont blame the animal one bit!!!0 -
With all due respect, we're talking about two young boys here.
Even if they did "taunt" the tiger (and at the moment its just a "blame the victim" supposition by the zoo), they shouldn't have to pay for that stupidity/immaturity with their lives.
That might explain what happened, but it sure as hell doesn't justify it.
The zoo housed a dangerous animal with a violent history (it had previously mauled a keeper), and failed to secure it properly. Ultimately its the zoos fault for what happened.0 -
quote:Zoo director Manuel Mollinedo said it was also likely that the animal was provoked.
"Somebody created a situation that really agitated her and gave her some sort of a method to break out," Mollinedo said. "There is no possible way the cat could have made it out of there in a single leap. I would surmise that there was help.
"A couple of feet dangling over the edge could possibly have done it."
This is a pretty nasty self-serving statement by the zoo director.
How does he know the tiger was provoked? Its a plausible explanation, but its still an assumption on his part, and he shouldn't state it as fact.
Assuming its true, what sort of "help" does he think the tiger had to get out?
Someone lowered a ladder in there for the tiger to climb out on? Perhaps one of the boys that was killed reached his hand inside and gave the 350 pound tiger a "boost" up the last two feet? Maybe someone handed the Tiger the key to its pen and pointed out where the lock was?
That statement about the feet dangling over the edge is also idiotic. What is he saying, that some kid dangled his foot over the edge, then the 350 pound tiger jumped up, grabbed the leg, and "piggybacked" its way out?
Of course its not fair to taunt or throw things at a caged animal, but really, I should theoretically be able to stand outside its enclosure and do that all day long without it being able to jump out and kill me.
Can you imagine the sign "CAUTION: VISITORS TAUNTING CAGED ANIMALS ARE SUBJECT TO IMMEDIATE FATAL ATTACK".0 -
quote:Originally posted by beantownshootah
With all due respect, we're talking about two young boys here.
Even if they did "taunt" the tiger (and at the moment its just a "blame the victim" supposition by the zoo), they shouldn't have to pay for that stupidity/immaturity with their lives.
That might explain what happened, but it sure as hell doesn't justify it.
The zoo housed a dangerous animal with a violent history (it had previously mauled a keeper), and failed to secure it properly. Ultimately its the zoos fault for what happened. yup, that's true, right now we don't know one way or the other if they were provoking it.
but, as for the rest of what you said, you're expecting the tiger to act like a human. it isn't. it is a logical, thinking creature, but the difference is u mess with it, u got some trouble. that's the way it goes with wild creatures.
'zactly like I said the other day on a related thread,
quote:Originally posted by buschmaster
it never ceases to amaze me how people mistreat, abuse, or tease animals (whatever animals) and think it's supposed to respond like a human would, that is, play along with their stupid little monkey game and not defend itself or flat out attack their freakish ass.
my gawd, how can anyone say we're not evolved from monkeys. sometimes it's so obvious.0 -
I always thought that the open enclosure size was figured by 1. The physical limits of the animal enclosed 2. The psychology of the animal and 3. The availibility of enclosure space. It appears that the animal may have been teased but it is also possible the Zoo fudged on the encloseure space. As far as letting the animal out it would not surprise me if PETA or some eco group did something like that. [}:)]If a PETA or a eco group did let the cat out, mabe it didn't like their rendition of "Born Free". 0
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