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(CNN)Zookeepers shot and killed a rare gorilla after a four-year-old boy slipped into its enclosure at the Cincinnati Zoo, triggering an outcry over how the situation was handled.
Footage shot by a witness shows Harambe, the 17-year-old male gorilla, standing near the boy, who went under a rail, through wires and over a moat wall to get into the enclosure, according to the zoo. The footage later shows Harambe dragging the child through the water as the clamor of the crowd grows louder and increasingly panicked.
~ a gorilla that shouldn't be there in the first place ~
You ever had a 4 year old? They can get away from anyone, no matter how close you watch them or how fast you are. It kinda surprises me the cage was designed so something that size could get through it. I would have thought it had something like chicken wire or smaller to keep vermin out if no other reason.
You ever had a 4 year old? They can get away from anyone, no matter how close you watch them or how fast you are. It kinda surprises me the cage was designed so something that size could get through it. I would have thought it had something like chicken wire or smaller to keep vermin out if no other reason.
Unfortunately they are not safe in their home territory though. I think many large animal species will soon only be found in zoos and thus it is the duty of those looking after them to really look after them. Enclosures that people can climb or fall into need to be reviewed quickly.
By the way, not the first time a child has fallen into a silverback's enclosure - I remember the case here in the UK when a small child fell into an enclosure and this time the gorilla stood guard over him and protected him from the other gorillas.
~ all the screaming and yelling that wound him up ~
Seems that the crowd got the gorilla agitated and he started making aggressive moves on the kid. Hard decision to make either way.
But I think the child's parents should be held financially responsible, if not criminally, at the very least.
You ever had a 4 year old? They can get away from anyone, no matter how close you watch them or how fast you are. It kinda surprises me the cage was designed so something that size could get through it. I would have thought it had something like chicken wire or smaller to keep vermin out if no other reason.
Did Cincinnati Zoo really have to kill a rare gorilla? - CNN.com
This was completely unnecessary killing a gorilla that shouldn't be there in the first place. What a gross overreaction caused by a negligent mother that couldn't control her child.
Seems that the crowd got the gorilla agitated and he started making aggressive moves on the kid. Hard decision to make either way.
But I think the child's parents should be held financially responsible, if not criminally, at the very least.
This is the definition of negligence. No different than a mother leaving her child inside a car when it is 100 degrees. The mother should be prosecuted.
The zoo should be shut down until they can secure the premise. A shame a innocent Gorilla had to be murdered because of this.
Seems that the crowd got the gorilla agitated and he started making aggressive moves on the kid. Hard decision to make either way.
But I think the child's parents should be held financially responsible, if not criminally, at the very least.
You ever had a 4 year old? They can get away from anyone ~
The zoo had to make a hard choice. They have a dangerous animal reaction team. The team, who were there, not us safe in our houses, had to make a snap decision. After seeing the four year old dragged in the moat, the made the decision to use lethal force on the gorilla. I stand behind them on that decision. The zoo made a mistake in assuming that the animal enclosure was secure enough that a child couldn't get into it. They were wrong. The parents failed to keep their child with them. In the end the gorilla paid the price.
If this went to a civil case against the parents, there would be a counter suit against the zoo. The zoo should revisit their animal enclosures to make certain that a child can't fit between the lower bars.
Zoo was responsible too. Kid shouldn't have been able to get in the enclosure in the first place.
Greetings, PoS. :2wave:
It just doesn't seem fair that we take animals out of their natural habitat, totally enclose them in man-made areas, then kill them if they don't act like we want them to! I've had four-year-olds, who are curious by nature, which is why you need to keep an eye on them for their own good! What if the child had fallen into a pit where snakes were kept? *shudders* Sad that an animal in captivity had to die for a parent's mistake! :thumbdown:
Barriers are not foolproof. Human beings will always find a way to get past them.
A few days ago a suicidal man entered the lion enclosure in Chile and the authorities shot and killed the lions too. Poor lions.
Chile: Lions shot after man enters enclosure, strips - CNN.com
Santiago Zoo scene of suicide attempt after naked man jumps into lion cage | Daily Mail Online
An innocent gorilla was already serving a life sentence.
The reaction team that had to put the gorilla down were put in awful dilemma. Tough call to make. Damn tough call to make. You just can't "what if" when a small child is involved. I feel for the team member who had to shoot him.
With that said the zoo needs to go up to each animal enclosure and see how easy it would be for a small child to climb into.
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