Did anybody here the crazy zoo/wildlife refuge story?

Iamfit4life

Out of Ohio... just heard it on the radio. Crazy story, looking for a link!

Iamfit4life

Police Seek Escaped Exotic Animals in Ohio
Updated: Wednesday, 19 Oct 2011, 7:41 AM EDT
Published : Wednesday, 19 Oct 2011, 7:35 AM EDT

By ANDY BROWNFIELD, Associated Press

ZANESVILLE, Ohio - Schools closed and motorists were warned to stay in their vehicles as officers with assault rifles patrolled a rural area in eastern Ohio Wednesday, a day after police killed dozens of escaped animals from a wild-animal preserve, where the owner was found dead.

As authorities warned that more animals still were on the loose, three school districts in the region and some private and special schools canceled classes as the remaining bears, big cats and other beasts from the Muskingum County Animal Farm were hunted down.

Flashing signs along area highways told motorists, "Caution exotic animals" and "Stay in vehicle."

Authorities wouldn't say how the farm's owner Terry Thompson died, but said it wasn't suspicious. The animals' cages had been opened and the farm's fences had been left unsecured, police said.

Close to 30 of the 48 animals were shot and killed on Tuesday. Officials were pondering how to dispose of the remains.

"These are wild animals that you would see on TV in Africa," Sheriff Matt Lutz said at a press conference. He told residents to stay indoors and sent updates to them via Twitter. There were no reports of injuries to the public.

The fences had been left unsecured at the animal farm in Zanesville, about 55 miles east of Columbus, and the animals' cages were open, police said.

The preserve had lions, tigers, cheetahs, wolves, giraffes, camels and bears. Police said bears and wolves were among the escaped animals that were killed and there were multiple sightings of exotic animals along a nearby highway.

Lutz called the animals "mature, very big, aggressive" but said a caretaker told authorities the animals had been fed on Monday.

Tuesday night, more than 50 law enforcement officials _ including sheriff's deputies, highway patrol officers, police officers and officers from the state Division of Wildlife _ patrolled the 40-acre farm and the surrounding areas in cars and trucks, often in rainy downpours. Lutz said they were concerned about big cats and bears hiding in the dark and in trees.

Neighbor Danielle White, whose father's property abuts the animal preserve, said she didn't see loose animals this time but did in 2006, when a lion escaped.

"It's always been a fear of mine knowing (the preserve's owner) had all those animals," she said. "I have kids. I've heard a male lion roar all night."

"This is a bad situation," Lutz said. "It's been a situation for a long time."

Lutz said his office started getting phone calls at about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday that wild animals were loose just west of Zanesville on a road that runs under Interstate 70.

He said four deputies with assault rifles in a pickup truck went to the animal farm, where they found the owner Thompson dead and all the animal cage doors open.

He wouldn't say how Thompson died but said several aggressive animals were near his body when deputies arrived and had to be shot.

Thompson, who lived on the property, had orangutans and chimps in his home, but those were still in their cages, Lutz said.

The deputies, who saw many other animals standing outside their cages and others that had escaped past the fencing surrounding the property, began shooting them on sight.

Staffers from the Columbus Zoo went to the scene, hoping to tranquilize and capture the animals.

Lutz said his main concern was protecting the public in the rural area, where homes sit on large lots of sometimes 10 acres.

White, the preserve's neighbor, said Thompson had been in legal trouble, and police said he had gotten out of jail recently.

"He was in hot water because of the animals, because of permits, and (the animals) escaping all the time," White said. A few weeks ago, she said, she had to avoid some camels which were grazing on the side of a freeway.

At a nearby Moose Lodge, Bill Weiser remembered Thompson as an interesting character who flew planes, raced boats and owned a custom motorcycle shop that also sold guns.

"He was pretty unique," Weiser said. "He had a different slant on things. I never knew him to hurt anybody, and he took good care of the animals."

Weiser said he regretted that the escaped animals had to be killed. "It's breaking my heart, them shooting those animals," he said.

Bailey Hartman, 20, a night manager at McDonald, also said it saddened her that the animals were being shot. But, she said, "I was kind of scared coming in to work."

Hartman said Thompson's wife, who no longer lives with him, was her teacher in middle school and used to bring small animals such as a monkeys, snakes and owls to school. "It was a once-a-year type of thing, and everyone would always get excited," she recalled.

Ohio has some of the nation's weakest restrictions on exotic pets and among the highest number of injuries and deaths caused by them.

In the summer of 2010, an animal caretaker was killed by a bear at a property in Cleveland. The caretaker had opened the bear's cage at exotic-animal keeper Sam Mazzola's property for a routine feeding.

Though animal-welfare
activists had wanted Mazzola charged with reckless homicide, the caretaker's death was ruled a workplace accident. The bear was later destroyed.

This summer, Mazzola was found dead on a water bed, wearing a mask and with his arms and legs restrained, at his home in Columbia Township, about 15 miles southwest of Cleveland.

It was unclear how many animals remained on the property when he died, but he had said in a bankruptcy filing in May 2010 that he owned four tigers, a lion, eight bears and 12 wolves. The U.S. Department of Agriculture had revoked his license to exhibit animals after animal-welfare activists campaigned for him to stop letting people wrestle with another one of his bears.

Mazzola had permits for nine bears for 2010, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources said. The state requires permits for bears but doesn't regulate the ownership of nonnative animals, such as lions and tigers.

The Humane Society of the United States on Wednesday urged Ohio to immediately issue emergency restrictions on the sale and possession of dangerous wild animals. "

"How many incidents must we catalogue before the state takes action to crack down on private ownership of dangerous exotic animals," Humane Society Wayne Pacelle said in a statement.

zenchild

check npr.org. it was on this morning.

cawfeesong

Yes! We live a few hours from there....crazy!!

chanstriste13

what a bummer...

Iamfit4life

It's sad they had to shoot all those animals.

chrissym78

I saw it too. I just hate that they had to kill all of the animals. Bizarre story.

AdymondNtheRuff

I am from OHIO but live in Charlotte and yes it is like a top story... What happened to the owner did they say yet? Did the animals get him but again who opened the cages?

ilovedeadlifts

Heard it on the radio this morning.

it's back on the radio now actually.


kind of bummed that they're shooting the animals. sounds like some unprepared police officers.

chubbychristianchick

This is about a half and hour from me... The guy who runs the refuge was found dead and all gates opened. They are thinking it was some type of animal rights group.

FearAnLoathing

Im watching it on the news,I dont understand why they cant tranq them. These are animals that have probobly spent most there lives in captivity,and they are just killing them.

ennaejay

oh my goodness. what a shame You'd hope that somebody who took on the responsibility of having a plethora of wild animals would also have some sort of protection system for them, a backup, in case something happened to the caretaker/owner.

i hesitate to sound unfeeling, but this would make a great movie. Who dunnit?

Sh1tsRainbows

thats sad :sad:

Krizzle4Rizzle

I was confused why they would kill them as well....

Iamfit4life

This is about a half and hour from me... The guy who runs the refuge was found dead and all gates opened. They are thinking it was some type of animal rights group.

This was my first thought, but that seems so violent/extreme.


Which is hypocritical IMO.

czechsmate

This is about a half and hour from me... The guy who runs the refuge was found dead and all gates opened. They are thinking it was some type of animal rights group.

This was my first thought, but that seems so violent/extreme.


Which is hypocritical IMO.

I watched this on the news this morning. Isn't that insane if it's true? What did these people expect would happen to these animals after the fact?? Crazy world packed with crazy people!

cparter

Im watching it on the news,I dont understand why they cant tranq them. These are animals that have probobly spent most there lives in captivity,and they are just killing them.

They stated that it was too dangerous to tranquilize them at night because they would react badly and would hide which would make them more dangerous when the tranquilizer wears off.

For those in which they could save they have saved (about 4 or 5 are caged as of last night) while others have to be put down. There are still a dozen or so loose which they are waiting until day break to search for them. The plan is to tranquilize those who less the policemen are in danger and then they are told to shoot to kill.

It is an unfortunate incident but such happens when we disrupt the natural order of things.

bluegirl10

:sad: This is so sad... I too don't understand why they are just killing them instead of tranquilizing them?...

Iamfit4life

:sad: This is so sad... I too don't understand why they are just killing them instead of tranquilizing them?...

My only guess, totally unprepared.

cantjustcant

He wouldn't say how Thompson died but said several aggressive animals were near his body when deputies arrived and had to be shot.


It has to be some group. He also owned a business which sold weapons. The articles also states that the cages were opened. I met him and toured the facility years ago. It was beautiful and very secure! He was very caring and loving with the animals and would often take in babies that had been orphaned in the wild. This whole situation makes me very sad.

Reneda

My daughter's class was supposed to go on a field trip to the refuge in May.. :-(

TheKitsune6

Monstrous. Disgusting. Shame on them for killing all those animals. Almost all of those animals are HIGHLY endangered. Not a single human was hurt by an animal and they just shoot them on sight and make excuses later. Shame on everyone involved.

normusnonaliam

I live here. Super crazy!

joybell32

My cousin is one of the OSP that is helping with it! Crazy to think that is only 3 1/2 hours from us!!! Still want to know how the man died though and if he opened the cages. Very interesting story!

ladybg81

Not quite sure why they had to shoot the animals. It is truly a tragic story.

that1grrl

I grew up in Zanesville and went to the high school that is just a mile away. My mother lives nearby and had a large cat sighting just 1/2 mile from her home. I drove by this man's farm A LOT. You could see the animals from the road. Perhaps in the beginning stages there was hope and promise of a rescue for exotic animals. It is NOT a refuge or zoo. It was a man's personal collection.

This "refuge" runs along I-70, and is near an elementary, middle, and high school, an apartment complex, McDonald's, gas stations, and residences all within 1-ish mile. This guy just returned from jail because of an illegal weapons violation and his wife had asked for a divorce. He opened all of the cages, then shot himself. The animals ate parts of his body. Police were notified only after sightings occurred. Some animals were still on the property, others fled, one was hit and killed by a car on I-70. The bears and lions were charging the horses and one of the cats killed a monkey. There were 56 animals on the farm. "Forty-eight animals were killed: 1 wolf, 6 black bears, 2 grizzly bears, 9 male lions, 8 lionesses, 1 baboon, 3 mountain lions and 18 Bengal tigers. Six animals were transported to the Columbus zoo: One grizzly bear, 3 leopards and 2 monkeys. 2 still missing: 1 wolf and 1 monkey" (NBC4i). He also had at one time buffalo, camels, and giraffes, The monkey may have Herpes B .Those that are dead will be buried on the property.

At first, I was horrified because I knew immediately that these animals were going to die. It took a lot of logic and rational thinking to come to the conclusion that some of it was necessary. Tranquilizers were not available, and when they did become available, they were difficult to use. It was after dark. When the police approached an animal to tranquilize, it ran. Different animals require carefully planned dosages. The wrong dosage would either kill the animal, or simply put it in survival mode (fight or flight). They couldn't risk human injury.

This was not necessarily a refuge in the sense of a 'rescue' with free roaming and happy animals. They were kept in cages similar to very large dog crates. The owner spent time in jail and paid fines for animal cruelty charges. Animals frequently escaped. It was similar to a junk yard with many (50+) vehicles. He may have thought that he was taking care of these animals and providing a better life. The man may have loved these animals, but it may be the type of love that hoarders have for their cats, dogs, etc.

Ohio has one of the least strict policies on exotic animal ownership in the nation. Several people own black bears in rural areas and there were several captive bears near my childhood home. They are allowed to do this with proper licenses and permits. But these permits and licenses often likely expire without the government knowing or caring. Former Governor Strickland (D) imposed a temporary exotic animal buying and selling ban prior to leaving office because of an incident near Cleveland where a caretaker was killed by a bear as he opened its enclosure. Our current Governor Kasich (R) let this ban expire in April. While this ban may not have stopped this incident in Zanesville, it would have prevented it from occurring.

If interested, http://www.whiznews.com/ has several stories with details.