Exotic animals escape Ohio farm, owner found dead

[JOD]

I saw an interview last night with the sheriff and with Jack Hannah. All I can say is that as badly as I feel for the animals, I feel worse for the cops who had to shoot them, and those who had to make that call.

The sheriff mentioned that their biggest enemy was nightfall, and that if this had happened in the morning, it would have probably had a much different outcome. Yeah, the animals were on the guy's property, but it didn't really seem like the property was all that secure, and they had about 60-90 minutes of daylight to corral 40-some giant, incredibly dangerous animals. It's not like the police have tranquilizer guns at the ready. I've seen what they use to tranquilize cougars when they end up in someone's driveway. It's not the sorta weapon that you have just laying around, and I doubt the cops had much training in tranquilizing bengal tigers....

Ultimately, in the interest of public safety I just don't see any other reasonable alternatives.

 

[Drew99GT]

http://news.discovery.com/animals/exotic-animals-ownership-111020.html

The idiocy in this tragedy is Ohio's lax laws on being able to privately own exotic large animals and not having the capacity to properly care for them. Animals like the ones that were killed need to end up at zoos or professional sanctuaries, not on some delusional goons private farm where they usually end up malnourished and mistreated.

We have a non-profit big cat sanctuary in my county where the animals are free to roam, there's a professional large cat vet there 24/7, and it's fenced in with huge metal fencing.

 

[Drew99GT]

Originally Posted By: mechanicx
The potential was there but was there every any report of anyone being actively threatened by the animals?


There were several 9/11 calls about lions and bears in the streets passing by people's cars.

The police did what they had to do, but the ultimate folly is the absence of laws in several states dealing with the sale and ownership of large exotic animals. This tragedy wouldn't have happened in other states.

 

[mechanicx]

Ohio's exotic animal rules are lax now dur dur I can't comment on partly why that is other than some restriction were allowed to expire. The regulations do need tightening up but I tend to think people should be able to own exotic pets with restrictions. I guess the question is how strong should the restrictions be. I hate when something happens calls for everyone to be restricted more come out.

 

[Shannow]

Had an Oz celebrity vet (you know the ones, giving mouth to mouth to slimy puppies after cesarians etc.) carrying on about the tigers last night's news, and they should have been surrounded, and captured.

I normally don't mind the guy (children worship him), but even my 6yo said "but what if the tiger bit someone ?".

I don't think they had any other choice, and acted appropriately and in the public interest.

 

[The_Jeff]

Originally Posted By: CATERHAM
Apparently all the animals were coralled, none escaped except for one monkey unaccounted for and according to the sherriff was likely eaten.

Sorry but I don't accept the position that tranquilizing wasn't a viable option and with zookeeper Jack Hanna on hand to give the go ahead for the mass slaughter that's all the Sherriff politically needed.

I'm not the only one who is critical of Hanna's role in all of this.


Jack Hanna ran his own wild animal park in the 1970s and a three year old boy got mauled (lost an arm) by one of his animals. He was sued and shut down. If I had to live with that I'd give the order to shoot, too.