Victims may have dangled legs over Tiger's moat, allowing tiger to escrape by latching on to leg

[Liberal_in_LA]

Warning: Don't dangle your leg over a Tiger's Moat.


http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/27/tiger.attack/index.html

Victims may have dangled leg over tiger's moat, says reportStory Highlights
NEW: Father of killed teen: Zoo "didn't do enough" to protect public

Clues near deadly tiger attack reportedly include footprint, blood, shoe

Report: Police investigating whether someone dangled leg over tiger's moat

Two surviving victims are in stable condition, doctor says

Next Article in U.S. »


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SAN FRANCISCO, California (CNN) -- The father of a teen who was killed by a tiger at the San Francisco Zoo questioned the facility's safety on Thursday, as police reportedly considered whether one of the victims taunted the deadly jungle cat.


Sources close to the investigation told the San Francisco Chronicle that police are probing whether one of the Siberian tiger's three victims climbed over a fence Christmas Day and then dangled a leg or other body part over the moat.

Police said Carlos Sousa, 17, of San Jose was killed just outside the tiger's enclosure. The two others, who were injured, were about 300 yards away by a cafe. Watch more on clues from the deadly attack »

A shoe and blood were found between the fence and the moat, the Chronicle reported, and a footprint has been found on a metal fence at the zoo. The investigation is looking into the possibility that the tiger escaped by latching on to a leg or other body part, the paper reported.

[hobbit709]

1. If true, then it's a Darwin Award nomination.

the fence and moat are not there to keep dangerous animals from getting out but to keep stupid humans from getting in.

[avenger64]

26. Exactly what I thought ...

... they shouldn't have shot that beautiful tigress before the facts were in.

[DCKit]

2. I found it highly suspicious that the tiger tracked the dead kid's companions across the zoo...

to continue the attack. They weren't the only three people at the zoo, even if it was after closing time.

We'll find out what happened soon enough.

[TwilightGardener]

5. Big kitties track their prey. They know how to focus on just one of a herd.

[GreenPartyVoter]

3. I can still remember the story of a 10 yr old kid swimming through a

polar bears' pool on a dare. Guess how that ended?

I will confess to my own zoo stupidity. There was a pit of infant black bears at the Quebec zoo. I ignored the sign and reached down to one and he latched onto my arm like it was life or death. I cradled him for a minute and he licked my fingers. I am sure he was expecting a bottle. With some difficulty I dislodged him and put him back in the pit.

I still have all my fingers and am not barred for life from the Quebec zoo, so I got away with it. Good thing I didn't try to visit the critters in the next cage. They were full grown Kodiak bears.

[hlthe2b]

4. If that is true, the surviving two should be charged....

They not only caused the death of the third boy, but put countless others at risk of harm or death, and they caused the ultimate destruction of this beautiful animal, that was only acting as a tiger would. Instead,the city may face lawsuits over these idiot's probable actions...:mad:

[ailsagirl]

9. Well said, hlthe2b

Not only is it cruel, but it's a sure recipe for disaster.

At least the tiger doesn't have to live her life behind bars anymore.

The whole thing was senseless and avoidable.

[LisaL]

10. Hah? How do you know which one dangled a leg?

I also find unlikely the idea that a boy sitting on the wall could have pulled the tiger out, if the tiger latched to the leg. Seems more likely tiger would have pulled the boy into the enclosure. Tiger is much heavier than the boy, and it's easier to pull down than up.

[hlthe2b]

13. I believe I said IF IT IS PROVED....

Wait and see where the evidence leads. However, one need not know much of the athleticism of these big cats to know that a brief hold would be enough to allow them to leap a considerable distance..

Even watching house cats should teach one that...

[RebelOne]

19. You would know by checking to see who is missing a shoe.

[SoCalDem]

24. The two survivors will probably not tell the "whole story"

since they might be held responsible.. Zoo animals rarely "escape" without human intervention of some sort.

The sad thing is that these animals still have their instinct, even if suppressed, and given an opportunity, they react ..

I just wish that we could know they exist and not have to cage them up to "look at".. It's a damned shame that their habitat was been ruined/appropriated, and they have to be "preserved" in captivity.:cry:

[PsN2Wind]

28. I'm inclined to think

that having a tiger suddenly hanging on your leg might just instill strength in you that you weren't aware you possessed.

[Kingshakabobo]

29. Me too..... as in "death grip" on the railing while the kitty climbs you like a tree.

[aikoaiko]

6. intuitively, it seems unlikely that a person sitting on a wall could provide enough leverage for a

...tiger to pull itself out. I would have thought the weight of the tiger would just pull the person in.

[ailsagirl]

7. When are we going to stop imprisoning these animals?????

What happened was horrible but it's not uncommon. Exotic animals don't BELONG in captivity :nuke:

PETA wrote a letter to Manual Mollinedo, Executive Director and President of San Francisco Zoo.

December 26, 2007

Manuel A. Mollinedo, Executive Director and President
San Francisco Zoo
1 Zoo Rd.
San Francisco, CA 94132-1027

1 page via fax: [phone]

Dear Mr. Mollinedo:

While authorities investigate the circumstances surrounding Tatiana's escape and the tragic mauling of several zoo visitors, PETA is asking that the zoo give serious consideration to phasing out its tiger exhibit. The San Francisco Zoo has already established itself as a facility that takes animal welfare issues seriously, including the zoo's honorable decision in 2004 to close its elephant exhibit and send its elephants to a sanctuary.

There are some species--including tigers--that simply do not belong in captivity because of their extraordinarily complicated physical and psychological needs. Scientists at Oxford University have concluded that big cats and other wide-roaming predators become neurotic when they are confined. No "educational" program is worth sacrificing animals' well-being.

Given that the average tiger enclosure is about 18,000 times smaller than the animals' natural roaming range, it is simply impossible for these animals to express instinctual behaviors, such as staking out territory in dense forests, choosing mates, running, climbing trees, and hunting.

Dangerous incidents with captive big cats are not uncommon. Since 1990, there have been more than 220 such incidents involving big cats in 40 states. Four children and 15 adults have lost their lives, and more than 50 other people have lost limbs or suffered other injuries after being mauled. The animals involved are victims too--75 big cats, including Tatiana, have been killed because of these incidents.

May we please hear from you regarding this matter at your earliest convenience? I can be contacted at 757-622-7382.

Sincerely,
Lisa Wathne
Captive Exotic Animal Specialist

http://www.peta.org/MC/NewsItem.asp?id=10697

[LisaL]

12. They are not imprisoned.

Not many tigers are left in the wild. Zoos are doing important conservation work.

[Dorian Gray]

17. Exactly

without the conservation and breeding programs, these tigers would be closer to extinction.

[ailsagirl]

18. Conservation is vital, but surely sanctuaries would be

preferable to zoos.

But even in sanctuaries, bad things can happen. (i.e., Tippi Hedren's "Shambala")

[Kashka-Kat]

20. No they aren't, animals don't breed all that well in captivitity -set up nature parks or

a natural setting where you can view the animals from an armored truck or something. I'd pay to see that!

[ailsagirl]

22. That's what I meant-- a natural setting. That's what I thought

sanctuaries were...

[Kashka-Kat]

21. No they aren't, animals don't breed all that well in captivitity -set up nature parks or

a natural setting where you can view the animals from an armored truck or something. I'd pay to see that!

[DCKit]

32. Unlike other's responses to the points made in this letter....

I agree wholeheartedly. The last time I was at the National zoo in DC, it was blatently obvious that the tigers had gone insane.

If these animals were capable of being domesticated, they would be kept as house pets, a la Sigfried and Roy. And we all know how well THAT turned out.

Large cats, bears and other animals with complex behaviors cannot be kept in cages or enclosures AND remain physically and mentally healthy.

[undeterred]

8. I spent a summer living in the jungle in Africa

and there were wild animals in the vicinity of the house at night. Elephants and hippos. They don't look for trouble, but you don't go out and mess with them- the Africans never did. I could hear them at night - hear their stomachs rumbling. I was scared at first but I got used to it. You respect them, they respect you. Fear is healthy, you don't want to lose it, even at a zoo.

[LisaL]

11. How is that physically possible?

This idea suggest that a boy sitting on the wall could pull up a 300-350 pound tiger.
Seems much more likely the tiger would have pulled the boy down into the enclosure, if the tiger got the boy by the leg.

[Cameron27]

15. I agree,

it seems more likely the tiger would have pulled the victim into the enclosure.

[hlthe2b]

16. Who said he pulled it up?

All the cat would need is a brief toe-hold prior to pouncing.... They are incredibly athletic, even though less so when enclosed in zoo settings.. There are also reports they threw boards and sticks down into the moat.... Wait and see where the evidence leads...

[formerrepuke]

14. 'sources close to the investigation' sound like they could be the zoo's legal team...n/t

[Beaverhausen]

23. I suspected something like this the minute I heard the news report

and that the victims were late teens-early 20s.

Sorry, but I don't think this tiger did it on her own. I think the evidence will show these kids taunted her and gave her an escape route. I read in one report something about a plank being found near the moat.

[Liberal_in_LA]

27. Didnt' hear about the plank. That's crazy.

[flying rabbit]

25. Hmm...

Yeah that seems like it would end badly.

[Rex]

30. So now this has been proven false?

Heard that no one fucked with the tiger, it just jumped the wall.

[EvilAL]

31. No shoe in the enclosure.

But at a news conference, police Chief Heather Fong said police had no information that anyone had put a leg over the railing, and she said no shoe was found in the animal's enclosure. She did not address whether the victims had teased the tiger.

She said a shoeprint was found on the railing of the fence surrounding the enclosure, and police are checking it against the shoes of the three victims.



http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071228/ap_on_re_us/tiger_escapes;_ylt=AsWMVLiCq0XQAynbjUX3WGvZa7gF