Animals don't know you love them.

[urbpan]

Animal lover mauled to death after entering cheetah cage at Belgian zoo



Animal lover mauled to death after entering cheetah cage at Belgian zoo

The Associated Press
Monday, February 12, 2007
BRUSSELS, Belgium

An animal lover was mauled to death by cheetahs at a zoo in northern Belgium, authorities and zoo officials said Monday.

It was unclear why Karen Aerts, 37, entered the cheetah cage late Sunday, Olmense Zoo spokesman Jan Libot said. She was found dead in the cage, Libot told VTM television.

Aerts, from the city of Antwerp, was a regular visitor to the zoo, which is 90 kilometers (55 miles) northeast of Brussels.

One of the cats that killed her was named Bongo. Aerts had adopted Bongo under a special program, paying for food for the cat, Libot said.

"Karen loved animals. Unfortunately the cheetahs betrayed her trust," he said.

Police said they were investigating why Aerts entered the cage, but ruled out any foul play.

They believe she hid somewhere in the park after it closed and managed to find the keys to the cheetah cage.

Animal rights group GAIA called for the immediate closure of the zoo, saying it was unsafe for both visitors and for the cats it is home to.

Rudy Demotte, Belgian minister responsible for animal welfare, has sent a team of inspectors to investigate.


Thanks to wtf_inc for the link.

Comments

Big Cat Attacks Are Escalating

[(Anonymous)]

The following is a partial listing (796) of incidents involving captive big cats since 1990. These incidents have resulted in the killing or deaths of 234 big cats, 69 human deaths, more than 243 human maulings, 214 exotic cat escapes and 363 confiscations. http://www.bigcatrescue.org/big_cat_news.htm

To see a video of the mauling of a zoo keeper in 2006 go to http://www.bigcatrescue.org/animal_contact.htm

The Journal of Internal Medicine in 2006 estimated that 50 million people worldwide have been infected with zoonotic diseases since 2000 and as many as 78,000 have died. Read more about zoonotic diseases here: http://www.bigcatrescue.org/zoonosis.htm

To see the number of exotic cats abandoned each year go to http://www.bigcatrescue.org/animal_abuse.htm

To view a trend chart that shows the alarming escalation of big cat incidents here: http://www.bigcatrescue.org/Flash/BigCatBans/BigCatBanCharts.htm

The U.S. represents less than 5% of the entire global population, but 67% of ALL captive cat incidents occur in the U.S. Likewise, Florida represents less than 6% of the U.S. population while 13% of all U.S. incidents occur in Florida. California and Florida boast the most comprehensive sets of regulations allowing private ownership of exotic cats while ranking #3 and #1 respectively in the highest numbers of big cat killings, maulings and escapes. To view photos of fatal injuries from cases reported in the American Journal of Forensic Medicine click http://www.bigcatrescue.org/laws/AMJForensicFeline.pdf

Carole Baskin, Founder of Big Cat Rescue

Re: Big Cat Attacks Are Escalating

[urbpan.livejournal.com]

This is excellent. I'm going to repost it at my animal_attacks community!