Trail of blood apparently led escaped tiger to victims

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | Dec 27, 2007 | Kevin Fagen, Jaxon Van Derbeken, Steve Rubenstein, Cecila Vega

[RedMonqey]

Zoo animals are not circus animals, people don?t need to go in with them."

Human contact in inevitable even in the safest of zoos. Tigers are EXTREMELY intelligent. As predators they will quietly, patiently observe their handlers, waiting for that minor slip in safety procedures and it is then they will pounce. This is what they do instinctively. And this is what happened TWICE, already. Fortunately there will not be a third.

This is where the distinction between their view of humans as prey or competitors comes into play.
Can animals like be handled? Yes but at the cost of the upkeep of other animals and budgets are already tight.

In the real world it requires money, ability, constant awareness that humans simply cannot maintain. And insurance companies and a fickle populace isn't likely to support in the long run.

Hard to imagine having a zoo fund-raiser where little boys and girls give up their nickels and dimes to support a blood thirsty man killer.

But then again we are talking San Francisco....

[driftdiver]

“Just my opinion, again, but the depth of the moat is meaningless if the tiger jumped across it, and remember, the tiger can jump 30 feet.”

I understand, but he would have to jump over 15 feet of moat plus 20 feet of wall, in one leap. The 15 feet is the width of the moat, not the depth.

[driftdiver]

“In the real world it requires money, ability, constant awareness that humans simply cannot maintain. And insurance companies and a fickle populace isn’t likely to support in the long run.”

There have been zoos for many years and while budgets are tight they continue to operate successfully all over the world.

“Hard to imagine having a zoo fund-raiser where little boys and girls give up their nickels and dimes to support a blood thirsty man killer.’

The tiger isn’t a man killer, its a tiger. A beautiful and powerful creature that makes the world a more interesting place.

[HairOfTheDog]

On the contrary, if this cat were still alive I’d be arguing and willing to donate to keep it alive, as I was the bears who were put down last year after a stupid person did something dumb, and as I did when a kid got bitten by Meercats or something in a zoo and they were all put down and tested so the little darling who climbed over a glass wall to reach them wouldn’t have to have ‘painful’ shots.

I have horses, they’re big animals and I know that complacency on my part can have big consequences. It goes with the territory and is part of the responsibility we take on when we put them in compounds.

[RightWhale]

The .40 is popular. More oomph than the 9mm, not as much as the .45.

[RedMonqey]

We're supposed to be the more intelligent of the two species.

Yeah . So I am told but evidently there are exceptions to the rule.

Sometimes I think television lulls some people into thinking it is safe to be in the same vicinity as top predators. After all the host(pick any nature show) gets close enough (and the zoom camera lens) gives the unreal sense o intimacy and safety when viewed in the security of our living rooms.

Add in the "Disneyifcation" as all animals are cuddly fuzzy creatures and just like humans It's no wonder people have lost their natural self preservation instinct of danger.

Just my humble opinion. Take it for what's it worth, ;-)

[Judith Anne]

Well, I was speculating, and I can certainly be wrong. You may be right, no problem. Still, an interesting discussion, and I enjoyed it. Thanks.

[RedMonqey]

Having a tiger in a cage is a risk in the first place. If they take that responsibility and risk to stick it in a cage...

There are risks and then there are unreasonable risks.

Considering my past comments it may surprise some to hear that I do not blame the tiger at all in this instance.

The boys placed themselves into the tigers area. The tiger(imho) could not have gotten out of its confines UNLESS it had sometime to sink its claws in and leverage itself out of its premises. In this case it was the kids leg and it was just enough to momentarily support it long enough to get out.

It comes as no surprise( well maybe not to liberals )One cannot idiot proof a zoo, much less so the world.

They endangered themselves, the zoo public and the animal itself when they dangled themselves over the tigers cage.

[Red_Devil 232]

Yes I heard that. I also heard that they was some other debris in the enclosure that did not belong there like a tree limb or sticks (pine cones?) plus pieces of shreaded cloth from a pant leg. Talk about asking for it! These guys timing was way off ... sun setting or already set ... taunting and animal that owns the night!

[LIConFem]

I agree whole-heartedly. The Disneyfication (and anthropomorphication) of wild animals is dangerous. “Cute & cuddly” they ain’t! ;o)

[RDTF]

do you think they were throwing things at her, including the shoe? or they actually went in there?

[RedMonqey]

If they knew the tiger could get out then yes. If they took reasonable precautions and this kid did something idiotic then I wouldn?t fault the zoo.

If I was on their jury I would agree with you. The kids were responsibile for this happening. If they had not hung their legs within reach of the tiger it could never had gotten loose in this manner.(I still think it was a very dangerous animal because of the first attack) However they would never put you or me in the jury box but instead put somebody mor " sympathetic", i.e, an idiot.

[dschapin]

Most animals have a natural fear of humans. When an animal has successfully attacked a human this fear is removed and it begins to view humans as normal prey. This is why animals in the wild like cougars that have attacked a human once are much more likely to attack again then another couger that has never attacked a human. If we quit sympathizing with such animals and instead killed every animal that mauled a human we would have many less of these attacks.

[Red_Devil 232]

While we’d like to believe we can tame the savage beast, we are only a best, delaying and temporally suppressing their true nature.

You are so correct. Any animal including our beloved pets will display and act with their true nature when taunted, aggravated. I have two Irish Setters a female and a male (litter mates). The female weighs about 85-90 lbs the male 125. The male has canine epilepsy and when he has an attack (seizure) he becomes very helpless and vulnerable and the female will take advantage of his vulnerability and attack. Of course the female is just reacting on instinct when this happens. Otherwise they are buddies!

[driftdiver]

“Well, I was speculating, and I can certainly be wrong. You may be right, no problem. Still, an interesting discussion, and I enjoyed it. Thanks.”

You may be right, it will be interesting to see if they can figure it out. I would be surprised if they built a cage in which they knew the tiger could get out at will.

[Red_Devil 232]

I have no idea. But why would someone take their shoe off and throw it into a Tiger pin? I have always prefered to wear two shoes or no shoes when walking around!

[RDTF]

the link on Fox’s site says blood was found with the shoe. Some have speculated he dangled his leg over and the cat moved faster than they could have imagined, using him as a stepping stone and dragging him out with her. The logistics just don’t add up.

[Red_Devil 232]

Just an observation concerning the moat and fence or wall. I don’t think the moat is/was filled with water. I don’t know how fast a tiger is out of the blocks but I would bet she could get up to full speed in a split second. She would not have to jumped the moat, just used her speed and momentum to take her down then up the other side of the moat and use that momentum to claw her way up the fence or wall to reach her tormentor.

[Red_Devil 232]

See #158

[Judith Anne]

I wonder what the men in the hospital are saying.