Recent Event at San Francisco Zoo Regarding Siberian Tiger Attack Once Again Proves Unnatural State of Zoos and Animals in Captivity

As stated below, it is possible that the teens were taunting the captive tiger. Life in captivity and this taunting could easily cause an already-stressed tiger to act.

A tragedy for all sides.

Article:

Cops: Tiger attack victim helped friend By JORDAN ROBERTSON and MARCUS WOHLSEN, Associated Press Writers

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071228/
ap_on_re_us/tiger_escapes

SAN FRANCISCO - The last minutes of a 17-year-old boy's life were spent trying to save his friend from the tiger that was mauling him at the San Francisco Zoo, only to have the animal turn on him, police and family members said.

Carlos Sousa Jr. and his friend's brother desperately tried to distract the 350-pound Siberian tiger, but the big cat instead came after Sousa.

"He didn't run. He tried to help his friend, and it was him who ended up getting it the worst," the teen's father, Carlos Sousa Sr., said Thursday after meeting with police.

The heroic portrait of Sousa and a timeline of the dramatic Christmas Day attack emerged as officials revealed that the tiger's escape from its enclosure may have been aided by walls that were well below the height recommended by the accrediting agency for the nation's zoos.

San Francisco Zoo Director Manuel A. Mollinedo acknowledged that the wall around the animal's pen was just 12 1/2 feet high, after previously saying it was 18 feet. According to the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, the walls around a tiger exhibit should be at least 16.4 feet high.

Mollinedo said it was becoming increasingly clear the tiger leaped or climbed out, perhaps by grabbing onto a ledge. Investigators have ruled out the theory the tiger escaped through a door behind the exhibit at the zoo, which remained closed Friday.

"She had to have jumped," he said. "How she was able to jump that high is amazing to me."

Mollinedo said safety inspectors had examined the wall, built in 1940, and never raised any red flags about its size.

"When the AZA came out and inspected our zoo three years ago, they never noted that as a deficiency," he said. "Obviously now that something's happened, we're going to be revisiting the actual height."

The 4-year-old tiger, a female named Tatiana, went on a rampage near closing time Tuesday, killing Sousa and severely injuring the two others before police shot it to death.

Brothers Paul Dhaliwal, 19, and Kulbir Dhaliwal, 23, were at San Francisco General Hospital with severe bite and claw wounds. Their names were provided by hospital and law enforcement sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because the family had not yet given permission to release their names.

After interviewing the brothers, police said Kulbir Dhaliwal was the animal's first victim.

As the tiger clawed and bit him, Sousa and the younger brother yelled in hopes of scaring it off him, police said. The cat then went for Sousa, slashing his neck as the brothers ran to a zoo cafe for help.

After killing the teenager, the tiger followed a trail of blood left by Kulbir Dhaliwal about 300 yards to the cafe, where it mauled both men, police said.

Four officers who had already discovered Sousa's body then arrived and found the cat sitting next to one of the bloodied brothers, police Chief Heather Fong said. The victim yelled, "Help me! Help me!" and the animal resumed its attack, Fong said.

The officers used their patrol car lights to distract the tiger, and it turned and began approaching them, leading all four to open fire, she said.

Police are still investigating how Tatiana was able to leave the enclosure.

At least one expert said the wall was low enough for the tiger to leap to the top.

Zoo officials said a "moat" separating the habitat from the public viewing area that measured 33 feet across contained no water, and has never had any. They did not address whether that affected the tiger's ability to get out.

"I think it could be feasible for a cat that has been taunted or angered," Jack Hanna, former director of the Columbus Zoo, said Thursday. "I don't think it would ever just do it to do it."

Police have not addressed whether the victims had teased the tiger.

On Thursday, Fong denied earlier reports that police were looking into the possibility that the victims had dangled a leg or other body part over the edge of the moat, after a shoe and blood was found inside the enclosure. No shoe was found inside, but 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, she said.

AZA spokesman Steven Feldman said the minimum recommended height of 16.4 feet is just a guideline and that a zoo could still be deemed safe even if its wall were lower.

Accreditation standards require "that the barriers be adequate to keep the animals and people apart from each other," Feldman said. "Obviously something happened to cause that not to be the case in this incident."

Many other U.S. zoos have significantly higher walls around their tigers.

Mollinedo said surveillance cameras and new fencing will be installed around the exhibit.

Cast Your Vote for IDA's Ten Worst Zoos for Elephants in 2007 List: Take Part in Raising Awareness to the Plight of Captive Elephants in Zoos

What an innovative way to tackle this important issue. I encourage all to at least visit the page. You’ll quickly be able to see just how many zoos are listed. This gives you a good idea on how many places have had incidents that have either killed or harmed an elephant. Unfortunately, the list is long.

Article:

Cast Your Vote for IDA's Ten Worst Zoos for Elephants in 2007 List

http://www.helpelephantsinzoos.com/10_worst_2007b.php

For the last few years, IDA has released its annual list of the Ten Worst Zoos for Elephants to draw attention to the appalling treatment of Earth's largest mammal in captivity and pressure zoos to provide the space and natural conditions elephants need or stop keeping elephants altogether.

The media has enthusiastically reported on our lists, bringing more scrutiny to the zoos that were singled out as being particularly sad and sorry places for pachyderms.

As the controversy surrounding elephants in zoos rages on, the 2007 list is sure to grab people's attention once again, and we need you to tell us which zoos are most deserving of this undesirable publicity.

This year, we are letting you—the people decide which zoos make the ignoble list. Cast your vote below and click on the zoo names for information to help you decide. The "losers" will be announced in 2008.

Cast your vote here: http://www.helpelephantsinzoos.com/10_worst_2007b.php

Six Flags Discovery Kingdom Kills Another Animal: Death of Giraffe Leads to In Defense Of Animals Has Filing Complaint With USDA

What in the world is Six Flags doing keeping live animals at an amusement park? How in the world does the USDA allow this?

Article:

VALLEJO: ANIMAL RIGHTS GROUP FILES COMPLAINT AGAINST SIX FLAGS
09/07/07 10:40 PDT

VALLEJO (BCN)

http://cbs5.com/localwire/localfsnews/bcn/2007/09/07/n/
HeadlineNews/COMPLAINT-FILED/resources_bcn_html

In Defense of Animals has filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture asking them to investigate the death of a giraffe at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom on Wednesday.

Makonnen the 2-year-old giraffe died when a one-alarm fire broke out in the giraffe barn at the amusement park, according to Six Flags. IDA is asking the USDA to investigate whether the animal's death was caused by lack of proper facility maintenance. An electrical outlet in the barn malfunctioned and started the fire.

The USDA approves exhibitors' licenses for people or venues that are going to be exhibiting wild or exotic animals, said Les Schilbert, a consultant for IDA, so they will conduct an investigation to see if the license should be revoked.

According to the IDA the federal Animal Welfare Act requires exhibitors to maintain housing facilities in good repair so that animals are protected from injury. In the filed complaint IDA also cited concerns about the lack of overnight monitoring of park animals.

The fire broke out just after 2 a.m. Wednesday night, according to a park spokeswoman. Two giraffes in an outside corral were led away from the flames, but Makonnen was inside the giraffe barn and perished.

25 Penguins Die of Toxin at Sea World on the Gold Coast in Australia: Proof Again that Zoos and Captive Situations Unnatural and Deadly

The killing of Clara at the St. Louis Zoo that was just motioned in the prior article (see http://geari.blogspot.com/2007/03/
st-louis-zoo-kills-oldest-elephant.html)

just adds weight to the argument that captivity WILL lead to premature and painful death for captive animals. Essentially, this toxin was related only to captive situations. As stated, “The toxin, which has yet to be properly identified, attacks the brain, kidneys and liver of penguins.” In other words, an extremely painful death.

This also follow the incident this month of the killing of a Jaguar and zoo worker. You can read about that at
http://geari.blogspot.com/2007/03/
killing-of-zookeeper-and-subsequent.html

For more on the health issues caused by putting large animals like elephants in zoos see http://www.helpelephants.com/


Article:

Penguin deaths put zoos in spotlight


http://www.theage.com.au/news/National/
Penguin-deaths-put-zoos-in-spotlight/2007/
03/16/1173722719363.html

March 16, 2007 - 2:00PM

The death of 25 penguins at Sea World on the Gold Coast has reignited debate over the treatment of animals in Australia's zoos and parks.

The popular Gold Coast theme park is planning to rebuild its population of fairy penguins after a mystery toxin killed 25 of them in the past week.

The toxin, which has yet to be properly identified, attacks the brain, kidneys and liver of penguins.

The birds became ill on Thursday last week and by last weekend, 25 of the 37 penguins at the park were dead.

Trevor Long, marine sciences director at Sea World, described the deaths of the fairy, or little, penguins at the popular theme park as a "sad day for all".

"This is a very unfortunate event and there's a lot of lessons to be learnt from many zoos and aquariums all around Australia.

"We think it's a freak occurrence but until we get more information and identify what the toxin is, we won't really know."

But the incident has raised questions about the safety and treatment of animals in captivity.

Wildlife Queensland policy and campaigns manager Des Boyland says the death of the penguins was a "very unfortunate accident".

Mr Boyland, who worked closely with Sea World when he worked for Queensland's Environmental Protection Agency, said the park had some of the best procedures for handling animals in the world.

But he said like players in any other industry, there were "good ones and bad ones".

"I would prefer to see animals in the wild, but there is a case for zoos and zoos can play a role, provided they are not driven by commercial gain and that they do positive things for the environment," Mr Boyland said.

He says parks such as Sea World and the late Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo, on the Sunshine Coast, were world-class operations.

"Steve's major contribution would be his extremely generous contribution to wildlife protection in the wild," Mr Boyland said.

"Sea World has an international reputation for animal rescue."

But there are concerns government environmental agencies and the RSPCA do not have the resources to regularly monitor zoos and animal parks

"The EPA barely have enough resources to satisfy their statutory obligations," Mr Boyland said.

"The RSPCA are very good but they are under a lot of financial stress and strain."

Zoos hit the headlines last year when Sydney's Taronga faced a battle with animal rights activists over four Asian elephants brought in from Thailand.

Campaigners launched a series of protests and legal challenges in a bid to stop the endangered elephants - part of an Australian-first breeding program - coming into the country, arguing it was cruel to keep them in zoos.

At the time, the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), RSPCA Australia and Humane Society International (HSI) called on the public to monitor the zoo.

Australian Democrats deputy leader Andrew Bartlett, a long-time animal rights campaigner, says the federal government should stop issuing permits for the export and import of animals that are not suited to the zoos they are bound for.

"This includes Australian native animals like kangaroos and koalas being exported to unsuitable zoos in Asia, or the import of Asian elephants into Australia," Senator Bartlett says.

"Governments can also implement comprehensive legislation that covers the welfare of the animal in zoo and park settings and they can make sure that the law is enforced."

Senator Bartlett says it is unfortunate that zoos had "historically poor standards".

"I believe that we need to work on reinventing zoos - ensuring that they all operate at a high standard that replicates natural habitats and circumstances as closely as possible," he says.

In response to public concerns, the quality of zoos and parks is about to get a boost with the peak body for operators set to launch a new accreditation system.

Australasian Zoos and Aquariums Association executive director Jonathan Wilcken said the new standards, to be launched in New Zealand next week, would include periodic audits of the organisation's 74 members.

"It's helpful to have a process which specifically aims at setting up best practice targets, and moving towards making them minimum," Mr Wilcken said.

In any case, zoo operators argue Australia has some of the toughest regulation in the world, with both state and federal governments setting standards.

"We are regarded in the international zoo community as one of the most regulated in the world," Mr Wilcken said.

As Sea World examines its specific problem, Senator Bartlett says questions should be raised about why penguins are allowed in a park in a subtropical environment like southern Queensland.

"It's hard to see how the way they are kept and displayed encourages a greater appreciation of these animals or their natural habitats," Senator Bartlett says.

"There is no environmental need for these animals to be kept in captivity.

"The purpose for doing so is little more than entertainment.

"We could and should be doing better than this in the 21st century."

Killing of Zookeeper and Subsequent Killing of Jaguar Shows Stupidity of Keeping Animals Captive (Zoos)

What a tragedy all around. A woman dies and then they kill the Jaguar who simply was acting out of instinct. I’ll let the following quotes sum it up, but really this proves once again just how unnatural zoos and keeping animals captive is. Just plain stupidity that is completely obvious to the thinking person.

Here are a couple quotes that sum this issue up:

"That is how a jaguar kills its prey, and that animal has been programmed to do that for thousands of years," she said.

"Regardless of the handling, the hand-rearing, the years of captivity, that animal is still a jaguar," she said. "Any predator is a predator and it will always have that instinct. They are looking for opportunities to be themselves."

"These animals should not be in zoos because of the possibility of these things happening, and for the welfare of the animals," Bekoff said. "What's to be gained by having an animal like that in the zoo?"


Article:

Jaguar Attack Renews Predator Debate

Some question whether big predators should be captive

http://www.myfoxcolorado.com/myfox/pages/News/
Detail?contentId=2517996&version=2&locale=EN-
US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.2.1

DENVER --

A jaguar's lethal attack on a keeper at the Denver Zoo has renewed the debate over whether big predators should be kept in captivity in the first place.

Ashlee Pfaff, 28, died Saturday after she was mauled by a 140-pound jaguar named Jorge. The jaguar was shot and killed when it approached workers trying to save Pfaff.

Marc Bekoff, a retired University of Colorado biology professor and author of "The Emotional Lives of Animals," called Pfaff's death a tragedy.

"These animals should not be in zoos because of the possibility of these things happening, and for the welfare of the animals," Bekoff said. "What's to be gained by having an animal like that in the zoo?"

Others argue that allowing humans to see such animals up close makes it easier to raise money and public support to preserve the animals and their habitats in the wild.

"Money that's raised by zoos goes a great distance to preserve their habitats. We can do so much with education," said Jack Grisham, vice president of animal collections at the St. Louis Zoo.

Denver Zoo officials said Tuesday they were cooperating with investigations by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and Denver police.

An autopsy found Pfaff died of a broken neck and had extensive internal injuries. Police spokesman Sonny Jackson said toxicology tests from the autopsy will likely take several days.

Pfaff was attacked in a service hallway adjacent to the jaguar's enclosure. Zoo officials said the door to the enclosure was open.

"We don't know if she was going in, and we never will," zoo spokeswoman Ana Bowie said. "Why that door was open and what she was doing, we do not know."

Zoo policy requires doors to be closed when keepers are in adjacent areas and forbids keepers to be in an enclosure when an animal is present. Zoo officials said Pfaff had experience working with big cats and knew the routines.

The animal had no history of abnormal behavior, and a necropsy showed it was in good health.

Bekoff said even experts exercising extreme caution can make mistakes that put them in danger when dealing with predators.

He cited himself as an example: Despite extensive experience studying wolves, he once took a step toward a male gray wolf's food inside an enclosure. The wolf backed him against the fence, stared and growled before eventually backing off.

"I was foolish to do what I did and I know wolves well," he said. "I almost got nailed by a wolf being stupid."

Mara Rodriguez, an instructor at the Exotic Animal Training and Management Program at Moorpark College in California, said Pfaff's neck injuries sounded like the result of a classic jaguar hunting behavior.

"That is how a jaguar kills its prey, and that animal has been programmed to do that for thousands of years," she said.

"Regardless of the handling, the hand-rearing, the years of captivity, that animal is still a jaguar," she said. "Any predator is a predator and it will always have that instinct. They are looking for opportunities to be themselves."

Steve Feldman, spokesman for the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, said fatal animal attacks in zoos are "fairly rare." He said it was still too early to know exactly what happened in Denver.

The association, which accredits the Denver Zoo and more than 200 other institutions, requires its members to train its workers and follow safety procedures.

Zoo officials say they continually train employees and evaluate safety procedures and conduct "red alert" animal escape drills at least four times a year.

The zoo has 16 staffers trained in the use of firearms in case of an escape. Four of those employees responded to the attack on Pfaff.

Before Saturday, the most recent fatal attack at the Denver Zoo was a bear attack that killed a zookeeper back in the 1920s.