Two stories this week leap to mind. First, in Caswell County, North Carolina, a 22-year-old woman who had just recently been graduated from college, and who was working at the Conservators Center, a nonprofit animal haven, was killed because someone failed to make sure a lock was secured on a lion enclosure.
A lion came out of its enclosed space and fatally mauled her.
Most zoos have firm policies of having two people check on door locks, but no such precautions took place here, and a young woman who had planned to devote her life to animal husbandry had her life come to an end before it really began.
And then on New Year's Day in Melbourne, Florida, someone decided to take a two-year-old to a rhinoceros yard, where people can reach through two-foot wide slats to touch rhinos.
And toddlers can squeeze through those slats, you know, and the little girl was injured in what the zoo calls a "hands-on educational experience with the zoo's white rhinoceroses."
The child survived being nuzzled by a rhinoceros's snout.
"Our number one concern is the safety and welfare of our guests and our hearts go out to the family," said Keith Winsten, the zoo's executive director.
The hands-on program is for people three and up, so why this child's parents thought it wise to let her in among these giant creatures is not known.
The Melbourne zoo is suspending the rhino encounter until they have reviewed their processes and procedures, and the Conservators Center is closed until further notice.
"This is the worst day of my life. We've lost a person. We've lost an animal. We have lost the faith in ourselves a little today," said Mindy Stinner, Executive Director of the Conservators Center.
I don't mean to pile on to people involved in this tragedy, and in the near tragedy, but I mean, really. Lions are adorable, but they will kill you. Rhinoceroses are something that makes us feel like stegosauri still walk among us, but they weigh thousands of pounds and would obviously crush a human with or without intending to do so.
We enjoy animals but there's a certain element of danger involved in it, and I think it's time that people acted sensibly. Sure, it's fun to interact with animals, but it's also fun to live tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment