A toddler boy visiting the Pittsburgh zoo somehow managed to fall into the wild dog exhibit and be ripped to shreds while his helpless mother watched from above. The horrific tragedy happened on Sunday and within minutes the story was everywhere with many questioning exactly how the little boy fell into the exhibit in the first place.
It's a good question. Wild "painted" African dogs are about the size of Labrador retrievers, weight about 37 to 80 pounds and are most dangerous in a pack. In this case, 11 dogs attacked the boy, though it is unclear whether he died from the fall or from the attack as yet.
One thing is clear: None of this should have been possible. A woman trying to "give her child a better view" should not have been able to drop him into the exhibit.
Of course, there are questions. Why did the mother not jump in after him? Understandably it happened in a matter of a seconds and the dogs were on him immediately. But imagining myself in that scenario, I can't imagine I would not make the (probably stupid) choice to jump right in and beat off the dogs.
Or maybe not.
Obviously, I can't judge the mom. I don't have any understanding of what that must have been like for her. What I can judge, though, is the zoo. For many reasons.
First of all, zoos are generally just controversial. The last dog -- a species considered endangered -- was shot because of this incident. It's not really the dog's fault. He was not a domesticated dog. He was a wild African beast who should probably be roaming in his native land, not on display for a toddler to be eaten.
Even more to the point, why was a mother able to drop her child into the exhibit? I have been to a thousand zoos from San Diego to Cincinnati and around the world and never once do I remember seeing an exhibit where it was possible to "accidentally" fall into a cage. Sure, someone who WANTED to scale a fence could do so. Stupid people do that regularly. But on "accident"? That just seems wrong.
Maybe we was wiggling. Maybe the mom was holding him in a bad way. Maybe she should not have been holding him in the way she was at all. But really, he should not have been able to fall into the exhibit. Until it is clear how this happened, I will place blame on the zoo.
The poor grieving mom, who screamed for help so loudly she was heard all over the park, is not the first person I would blame. This story is everything that is wrong with zoos.
Painted dogs are not an "exhibit." They are wild animals capable of great destruction. As parents, we trust the zoos to know that and keep us safe. How did this happen? It is unimaginable and my heart breaks for that poor mom.
Do you think this is the zoo's fault?
Image via Mister-E/Flickr
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Comments 159
Why do they always kill the animal in these situations. If your going to kill an animal because it killed a human, you should probably put them all out of their misery because many of the animals on this planet would kill us. Except cows and chickens, and we eat them.
Why should we question the zoo? It was the idiot parent who probably ignored warning signs and placed the boy on the fence so he could get a better look.
Unless the fence physically broke away, the parent has ALL the blame in this one. Charge him/her with manslaughter, and the zoo should get to sue the family for the loss of the dog.
People are so freaking stupid.
This is my zoo, I am there probably 30 times a year. This fence was at least 4 feet high, and unable to be climbed. She placed the child on top of the fence so he could see in the pit. If she had used her brain and looked around right next to the overlook area there is a big glass window that you can get right up next too to see the entire exhibit as well, so the child could get a better look at the dogs with out being dangled over a protective barrier. While I feel bad for the mother, this was not my Zoo's fault. There are plenty of protections in place all over the zoo and at this overlook as well. The mother was lacking in common sense and the Zoo should not be blamed because of the sheer stupidity of one person.
In my son's zoo-going life, I've lifted him up to see over heads and obstructions, but that's me holding him well away from the fences, not perching him on them. That's just common sense. You hold them UP, you don't sit them on the railing. I feel bad for her because of the situation, but the zoo wasn't at fault.