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Thursday, November 21, 2013

Becoming Cat Food: Unregulated Trade in Wild Large Cats Claims Another Life at Sanctuary



Last week in Oregon, Renee Radziwon-Chapman, 36, the head keeper was killed by a captive cougar at a big-cat sanctuary.  The AP reports that Since 1990, more than 20 people have been killed by captive big wild cats at sanctuaries, zoos and private residences, more than 200 people have been mauled and 200-plus wild cats have escaped, according to one of the nation's largest wild cat sanctuaries.

Experts say that because sanctuaries are largely unregulated and anyone can open one, there are no uniform safety protocols. And over-confidence or human error can lead to tragic consequences even among the most experienced of caretakers.

"It's a risky business when you're dealing with dangerous wild animals. You can't leave any room for error," said Vernon Weir, director of the Nevada-based American Sanctuary Association which certifies sanctuaries
 
Authorities guard the entrance to Cat Haven
The cause of all the deaths is all the trade in large cats, whether for pets or as trophy animals. Tiger cubs are cute.  Full size tigers are not.  Neither are cougars.  They may be beautiful, but they are wild animals with huge teeth and claws that are not meant to be in tiny cages, and I believe, largely pissed off about it. 

The fatal mistakes, experts say, usually happen due to human nature.

"There is a certain psychology at work when you work with these animals day in, day out," said Weir of the American Sanctuary Association. "You begin to feel comfortable around them. But they're still wild animals, you don't know what can set them off, and the results can be tragic."

What sets them off is being hemmed into a little cage or even into a small area and fed through a cage every day.  You’d be upset too.  I don’t think something sets them off.  They probably just have enough one day, or one day see an opportunity and take it. 

The experts do agree that the way to stop the deaths of the handlers at sanctuaries is to stop the trade in the animals themselves.  There is proposed national legislation that would prohibit the private possession and breeding of big cats.  I’m sort of at a loss to understand how this couldn’t be the law anyway.  Two years ago in Zanesville, Ohio, a private individual, Terry Thompson, who owned a private wild animal farm shot himself after releasing fifty of the animals into the countryside.  

His neighbors weren’t happy.  This all begs the question, how did an individual get wolves, bears, cougars, leopards and lions, and it was all legal.  The last thing anyone needs is to have a tiger next door.  At that point, whoever’s near has a good chance of becoming cat food.

Story and photo credit: http://www.chron.com/news/us/article/Attacks-deaths-rampant-at-wild-cat-sanctuaries-4982835.php?cmpid=usworldhcat

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