Source1: Tragedy Strikes San Francisco Zoo
Zoo director Manuel Mollinedo received an alarming call shortly after 5 p.m. as darkness was falling on San Francisco. One of his tigers was on the loose! She had escaped her enclosure and attacked a teenager and two other young men before bounding into the zoo's dense foliage and winding paths.
As Mollinedo rushed to work, police declared the entire zoo a crime scene. After some searching, they found the resting tiger, a 4-year-old, 350-pound Siberian tiger named Tatiana. They shot and killed the animal, but the damage had already been done. One of the men the tiger attacked,17-year- old Carlos Sousa Jr., later died of his wounds.
No one knows why Tatiana, a favorite among zoo visitors,
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Anti-zoo activists argue that zoos are like prisons and that zoos drive many animals crazy by confining them.
Critics believe that wild animals in zoos suffer physically and mentally as their needs cannot be met in unnatural environments. Many animals in zoos show signs of distress, such as pacing or rocking backwards and forwards repeatedly. Experts say that this abnormal behavior is caused by the stresses of being held captive.Critics talk about big cats endlessly pacing back and forth in their cages, zoo elephants constantly swaying side to side, polar bears swimming in endless circles, and monkeys over grooming themselves until they have no fur left.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is a leader in the anti-zoo movement. "PETA is firmly opposed to keeping wild animals in captivity," Lisa Wathne, the group's exotic animal specialist, told Current Events. "There are some animals, such as tigers and elephants, which roam large areas in the wild, that should never be held captive. Since 1990, there have been at least 220 incidents in 40 states involving big cats. Four children and 15 adults have lost their lives, and more than 50 other people lost limbs or suffered other injuries after being mauled." She points out that the animals are victims too: 75 big cats, including Tatiana, have been killed because of such