Post by micki on Dec 27, 2007 13:48:58 GMT
Got this story off msn news about a Zoo Tiger in the U.S.
Was Killer Tiger Let Out Of Cage?
Updated:09:09, Thursday December 27, 2007
A Siberian tiger which mauled a teenager to death may have been let out of her zoo enclosure, according to experts.
Tatiana the Siberian tigerThe big cat exhibit at the San Francisco Zoo has been cordoned off by police as a crime scene.
Police shot dead four-year-old Tatiana after a Christmas Day rampage that began when she escaped from an enclosure surrounded by an 18ft wall and a 20ft moat.
Carlos Sousa, who was 17 years old, was fatally injured. Two brothers who also were visiting the zoo were severely mauled.
Last year, Tatiana ripped the flesh off a zookeeper's arm while the woman was feeding the animal through the bars.
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Police Chief Heather Fong said her officers would "determine if there was human involvement in the tiger getting out or if the tiger was able to get out on its own."
Ms Fong said they have not ruled anything out, including whether the escape was the result of carelessness or a deliberate act.
One zoo official insisted Tatiana did not get out through an open door and must have climbed or leaped out.
Jack Hanna, former director of the Columbus Zoo, said such a leap would be an unbelievable feat, and "virtually impossible".
"There's something going on here. It just doesn't feel right to me," he said. "It just doesn't add up to me."
Carlos Souza was one of three attackedHe thought visitors might have been fooling around and might have taunted the animal and perhaps even helped it get out.
Ron Magill, a spokesman at the Miami Metro Zoo, said it is unlikely a zoo tiger could make such a leap, even with a running start.
"Captive tigers aren't nearly in the kind of shape that wild tigers have to be in to survive," he said.
He said taunting can definitely make an animal more aggressive, but "whether it makes it more likely to get out of an exhibit is purely speculative".
But Sy Montgomery, a naturalist and author, said such a jump was possible.
"Not every tiger could do it," she said, "but like human beings, every creature has its own amazing athletes."
After last year's mauling, a state investigation blamed the zoo, which installed better equipment at the Lion House.
Was Killer Tiger Let Out Of Cage?
Updated:09:09, Thursday December 27, 2007
A Siberian tiger which mauled a teenager to death may have been let out of her zoo enclosure, according to experts.
Tatiana the Siberian tigerThe big cat exhibit at the San Francisco Zoo has been cordoned off by police as a crime scene.
Police shot dead four-year-old Tatiana after a Christmas Day rampage that began when she escaped from an enclosure surrounded by an 18ft wall and a 20ft moat.
Carlos Sousa, who was 17 years old, was fatally injured. Two brothers who also were visiting the zoo were severely mauled.
Last year, Tatiana ripped the flesh off a zookeeper's arm while the woman was feeding the animal through the bars.
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Police Chief Heather Fong said her officers would "determine if there was human involvement in the tiger getting out or if the tiger was able to get out on its own."
Ms Fong said they have not ruled anything out, including whether the escape was the result of carelessness or a deliberate act.
One zoo official insisted Tatiana did not get out through an open door and must have climbed or leaped out.
Jack Hanna, former director of the Columbus Zoo, said such a leap would be an unbelievable feat, and "virtually impossible".
"There's something going on here. It just doesn't feel right to me," he said. "It just doesn't add up to me."
Carlos Souza was one of three attackedHe thought visitors might have been fooling around and might have taunted the animal and perhaps even helped it get out.
Ron Magill, a spokesman at the Miami Metro Zoo, said it is unlikely a zoo tiger could make such a leap, even with a running start.
"Captive tigers aren't nearly in the kind of shape that wild tigers have to be in to survive," he said.
He said taunting can definitely make an animal more aggressive, but "whether it makes it more likely to get out of an exhibit is purely speculative".
But Sy Montgomery, a naturalist and author, said such a jump was possible.
"Not every tiger could do it," she said, "but like human beings, every creature has its own amazing athletes."
After last year's mauling, a state investigation blamed the zoo, which installed better equipment at the Lion House.