Did anybody here the crazy zoo/wildlife refuge story?

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.