Posted on 07/17/2018 1:21:03 PM PDT by BBell
Valerio, the 3-year-old jaguar at Audubon Zoo who got out of his habitat and killed 9 animals on Saturday (July 15), is believed to have escaped through an 8-by-10-inch hole in the roof of his enclosure.
Audubon Zoo officials on Monday gave an update on their investigation into Valerio's escape, providing a detailed timeline of what zoo staff did once they discovered the jaguar was outside the habitat. Five alpacas, three foxes and an emu were attacked by the jaguar and died.
Officials believe Valerio bit through the enclosure roof's woven stainless steel fencing - a fact that a zoo official called surprising - to create the hole.
Zoo staff also do not know how long Valerio was out of his habitat. His escape was discovered at 7:20 a.m., when a staffer heard animals in distress and discovered Valerio in the fox pen. However, by that point he had apparently already attacked the alpacas and emu.
Valerio was fully sedated and inside a secure enclosure by 8:15 a.m. Here is the timeline of events during that period detailed by Burks.
7:20 a.m. - A zoo employee tasked with delivering animal diets to enclosures at Audubon Zoo approaches the Louisiana Swamp exhibit and hears "signs of animal distress." Burks said the employee looked through the fence of the zoo's fox enclosure and saw Valerio inside. He and a fellow employee immediately backed away and sought shelter inside.
7:22 a.m. - The employee sends a radio call to security staff saying a jaguar has escaped. The security staff started the zoo's animal escae protocol, which includes ensuring that everyone - including guests, if the zoo were open - takes shelter inside.
(Excerpt) Read more at nola.com ...
The escaped animal prevention.... not so well. Those folks really dropped the ball.
I remember going to Audubon Parkk Zoo as a kid. Most of the cages were very small, as I recall. There was this stir-crazy baboon who used to... Never mind.
It’s actually a very nice zoo now with nice “enclosures” (they don’t call them cages anymore). It’s one of the better run zoos in the country.
Best day of his life.
"A zoo employee tasked with delivering animal diets to enclosures"How about this instead:
"A zookeeper feeding the animals"These "reporters" must get paid by the word.
He somehow missed the partridge in a pear tree.
Yes, I agree, a very nice zoo and I have been there many many times and stood by that exhibit.
Thank God the Zoo had not opened for the day.
It looks like chicken wire.
I knew a Dutchman who used to sneak oranges rubbed in tuna into the zoo and toss them to the monkeys with predictable results. He thought it was hilarious.
Must have been really hungry because libs tell us humans are the only ones that kill for sport.
Any predator or any pest can fit its entire body through any hole that will allow its head to pass. Count on it. Evidently, some one at the zoo didn’t.
That would be woven stainless steel chicken wire.
He’ll tell his grand kids about it.
My daughter said she and my grand girl are “friends” with him. Through the glass of course.
I just looked it up and yes it was shot in New Orleans. part of it in the town I live in.
Was it ever tested or did someone just decide 'yeah, that'll work'?
It’s such a beautiful zoo. Yes, I have stood at that glass with my kids and grandkids many times through the years.
I remember reading that jaguars have the strongest bite force of any of the big cats - sounds like this chain link fence wasn’t nearly strong enough to hold him in.
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