Zoo Gorilla Killed After Boy Got Into Cage. Controversy

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WhatInThe

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A endangered zoo gorilla was killed by a zoo dangerous animal response team after a boy fell into it's cage and being dragged around for 10 minutes. Tranquilizing the animal was not an option in it's agitated state in which it probably would be become more violent before falling asleep.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/outrage-after-gorilla-harambe-killed-at-cincinnati-zoo-to-save-child/

Now controversy with activists screaming justice for the gorilla and wanting the mom charged with child endangerment. Hmmm, wonder how the boy is doing.

A horrible accident but stuff happens. PETA had the best response saying zoos should be avoided ie it wouldn't have happened if we weren't caging and displaying animals to begin with. The fact the zoo has a dangerous animal response team with lethal force as an option should tell people about the nature of the beast/business.
 

Stuff happens when mothers are careless, that's for sure. First time I saw that on the news I asked my husband what kind of mother lets a 3 year old wander off crawling through bushes and jumping into an animal cage at a zoo. The zoo may have had the enclosure better protected too, I'm not sure how easy it was to get in.

The parents have to take some responsibility for their young kids, no excuses! The boy had threatened to do this before it even happened, the mother should have been on high alert at least!

O’Connor says she heard the 4-year-old saying he wanted to jump into the gorilla’s habitat before the incident. The boy’s mother was also tending to several other young children.
“The little boy himself had already been talking about wanting to ... get in the water. The mother's like, 'No, you're not, no, you're not,'” O’Connor said.
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It's a shame that the animal had to be killed, but they had no choice at that point. How many times has something similar happened with children in the past? I'm not crazy about zoos and circuses either....or PETA for that matter.
 
I had heard she was watching 4 children. Maybe she should've done like the kindergarten and day cares do, put them on a leash together. They'll probably be security footage for how the child got in there and/or what the mom was doing. I was never tempted to do such a thing as child but those were different times.
 

Although not a Gorilla a couple of weeks ago a man in Chile tried suicide by lion jumping into lion cage. The lions were killed the man survived a mauling. There should be some kind of standard in zoos especially about keeping humans out and animals in.

http://www.13abc.com/home/headlines...man-enters-Chile-zoos-lion-pen-380415981.html

I almost posted last week but I figured no one would believe until other news sights started picking it up. In some respects frightenly timely.
 
I think the key question is...what kind of barriers did this zoo have, to keep people out. If a small child could get through the "fencing", that doesn't sound very secure, to me....either for the people, or the animals.
 
I think the key question is...what kind of barriers did this zoo have, to keep people out. If a small child could get through the "fencing", that doesn't sound very secure, to me....either for the people, or the animals.
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That's a very good point. You would think the habitats of any potential predators would be 100% secure inside and out. No one should be able to get in unless they are authorized and certainly the poor creature shouldn't be able to get out. Animals can be pretty crafty. When we first got Callie he popped up in the neighbors yard a few times.

Of course it scared her to pieces but he didn't do anything bad. But our yard has eight foot fencing all around. He is so bulky he needs to be lifted on the bed, no way he was leaping that fence. Then we figured it out, a tiny opening behind a bush, he was squeezing himself under the fence. Bricks and a railroad tie solved the problem. But zoo's need to be accountable for things like that.
 
They could put up a thick see-through wall like they do in aquariums. The kid needs to be tethered on a harness. In the footage I saw of this, the gorilla seemed to be trying to help the boy. I'm on the animals' side. I had a high jumping dog once, so I had to build a high fence. At 2 1/2 my grand nephew kept climbing onto the roof of his house. Little kids that age are disasters waiting to happen.
 
Incredible that the enclosure was so insecure that a very young child could just slip through. I hope this is at least a wake-up call.

I am personally not a fan of zoos, period. I guess I side with the Peta people on this.
 
That's what I posted with the petition, they are animals that belong in the wild. They are not frickin' hamsters to be used for human entertainment.
 
I think there is blame to share and one can always say 'should've' 'could've' ie analyzing after the fact. I'm still wondering how the child got in there in the first place. There is an obvious gap in their barrier/security system. How many times have anyone's parents took their eyes off their kids in a public place and nothing happened,not even a close call. I think the parent's "should've" briefed/told their children these are dangerous animals and do what I say at all times including stay close as with any public place-DONT WONDER OFF! I seem to remember being told don't taunt, feed or play with the animals last century. Although I understand the desire to put children in a harness/on a leash, teather what ever after surviving childhood that included many excursions to public places and zoo a leash wasn't needed or even a notion by any parent. I know different times etc. But I'm not ready to smoke the parent/s yet as others have publically done.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_facto..._is_dead_and_his_parents_aren_t_to_blame.html
 
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On this evenings network news, they showed the "barrier" around this gorilla compound....nothing but 3 round pipes spaced about a foot apart, and reaching a height of perhaps 4 feet. Beyond the pipes is a couple feet of concrete, and then, the Moat. Anyone could easily crawl through or over this barrier. It's amazing that more people, especially small children, haven't fallen into this Moat. Sure, the Mother could have exercised more caution, but anyone who has been around 3 or 4 small kids knows that you can't watch all of them at the same time.

The same news report showed Zoo workers working on the barrier, and they appeared to be adding some fencing to the pipes...Kind of like closing the barn door After......
 
I have to fault the zoo, there should be no way a 3 year old child can defeat the security measures of the gorilla cage. I used to go to the zoo, now I feel bad for the zoo animals, they are locked up like felons for what, being an animal? Although sometimes rescued animals end up at the zoo. So it is a confusing situation. I even read somewhere the Dad and Mom have criminal backgrounds, so what does that have to do with anything. I will give them this, at least they took there kids to the zoo, too bad the gorilla pit was so accessible to little children.

They say that gorilla could crush a coconut with his hand, yikes so they had to shoot the poor guy. What do people want, a negotiator to bargain some bananas for the little boy it was too late at that point.

So either put up some safe enclosures that no child can penetrate or tear down the zoo, it is that simple. We are lucky that little boy is still living.
 
Don M. said:
On this evenings network news, they showed the "barrier" around this gorilla compound....nothing but 3 round pipes spaced about a foot apart, and reaching a height of perhaps 4 feet. Beyond the pipes is a couple feet of concrete, and then, the Moat. Anyone could easily crawl through or over this barrier. It's amazing that more people, especially small children, haven't fallen into this Moat. Sure, the Mother could have exercised more caution, but anyone who has been around 3 or 4 small kids knows that you can't watch all of them at the same time.

The same news report showed Zoo workers working on the barrier, and they appeared to be adding some fencing to the pipes...Kind of like closing the barn door After......
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One would figure children being a big demographic of those attending zoos would be thought of when thinking safety and security.
 
One of the things or issues that have puzzled me with this incident is that witnesses seem to remember the mom telling the child no to going into the mote and that the mom was dealing with other kids and/or on the phone. But yet the same people that "noticed" or pay attentioned to the mom did not notice or help stop a child from working it's way into a gorilla cage. What were these bystanders or witnesses doing or not doing. It wasn't their fault or responsibility yet as many are ready to hang the parents, slam the zoo many won't take the iniative to keep a child out of danger.
 
SeaBreeze said:
Stuff happens when mothers are careless, that's for sure. First time I saw that on the news I asked my husband what kind of mother lets a 3 year old wander off crawling through bushes and jumping into an animal cage at a zoo. The zoo may have had the enclosure better protected too, I'm not sure how easy it was to get in.

The parents have to take some responsibility for their young kids, no excuses! The boy had threatened to do this before it even happened, the mother should have been on high alert at least!



It's a shame that the animal had to be killed, but they had no choice at that point. How many times has something similar happened with children in the past? I'm not crazy about zoos and circuses either....or PETA for that matter.
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I agree, SB. If you are going to take children this young to a zoo (or any public place, for that matter) you have to absolutely keep your eyes on them at all times, difficult or not. I read somewhere that the mother had 4 young children with her. I question the wisdom of taking that many young children to a place like a zoo with only one adult to supervise them. Kids can wander off and get into trouble in the blink of an eye -- and if the child had already said he wanted to jump into the gorilla's habitat, I would have grabbed his hand and/or herded the whole bunch of kids out of there.

In a crowded place, you have to have enough supervision to keep how many ever children safe -- even if they don't wander off into an animal's habitat, they can get lost, grabbed by a stranger, etc., and vanish into the crowd in the time you are distracted by another child.

As you said, I don't know how well the enclosure was protected, either, but a parent has to be aware that little kids WILL try to wander off, and be vigilant to see that they don't.
 
WhatInThe said:
Which one, it's coming from all sides here. Charge the mother, charge the zoo, gorilla memorial fund?
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The zoo and mother both share equal responsibility. The mother should have, at no time, lost sight and/ or control over her child. The zoo should have a secure enclosure, unbreachable by no one other than authorized personal. The mother's failure to keep track and control over her child is a chargeable offense(neglect). The zoo committed no chargeable offense, providing what they deemed as adequate security for animal and child, but a case could be made in civil court claiming they could have provided a more secure enclosure.
 

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