Safety not taken for granted at Beardsley Zoo after tiger attack in San Francisco
Published 7:00 pm, Wednesday, December 26, 2007
The San Francisco attack occurred Tuesday when Tatiana, a Siberian tiger, escaped from its enclosure and attacked the men. One died and the other two were injured. It's unknown how Tatiana escaped.
Goff was at work Wednesday at Connecticut's only zoo and said the San Francisco incident was shocking and distressing to those in the industry. He said all zoos take measures to protect animals, staff and visitors. "Safety and animal care are like the two biggest things in our world," Goff said.
Beardsley has four Siberian tigers, also known as Amur tigers, and there have been tigers at the zoo "for a very long time," Goff said.
He said the zoo takes several safety precautions, such as limiting the number of people who have keys to cages, and making sure the zoo's staff members are healthy and alert while dealing with dangerous animals. If someone is ill or unable to concentrate on their job for some reason, they're advised not to come to work.
"If you're not focused on what you're doing, that's where mistakes come in," Goff said.
He said attacks like the one in San Francisco are possible in a zoo - the same way that a car accident is possible every time one gets behind the wheel. However, he added, these incidents are far less common than motor vehicle crashes. "Statistically, if you look at the law of averages, we're a lot safer than driving on the highway," he said.
On Wednesday, the Maryland-based Association of Zoos and Aquariums addressed the San Francisco incident, claiming that it was the first time an animal escape resulted in visitor's death at an institution accredited by the association.
The association is the leading accrediting organization for zoos and aquariums. More than 200 institutions are accredited through the association, including both the San Francisco Zoo and Beardsley.
Goff said he's particularly interested in learning how and why the San Francisco tiger got out of its enclosure, as it's not in their nature to do so. He said he knows of incidents in which exhibits have been damaged by storms, allowing the animal inside a chance to get out, and the creature refuses to leave.
"These animals don't normally want to [escape]," Goff said. "Something had to drive that animal to want to do that."
Meanwhile, all was relatively quiet at Beardsley on Wednesday, with a few families visiting the zoo looking for a respite from the winter blahs. That included husband and wife Susan Straub and Jeff DeMarrais, of Trumbull, who took their two young sons for a walk past the zoo's tiger exhibit.
Straub said she and her family had been on vacation and hadn't heard about the San Francisco incident. The news was surprising, as she's always considered zoos safe places. "I never really worried about it," she said.
Zoos usually are safe, Goff said. But people have to realize that the creatures inside can be dangerous. "These are wild animals," he said. "These are not going to jump up on your lap and lick you."