RIP HARAMBE :(

[Blindgreed1]

I can't remember ever hearing about anyone getting hurt or killed in a zoo when I was growing up. Maybe it has to do with where I grew up? I remember the Nam kill count every night with Walter Cronkite, but never anything about zoo maulings or killings.

I remember seeing a few stories on tv and reading about zoo workers and handlers/trainers getting killed, usually by big cats. I think the qualifications and safety precautions for zoo staff have increased significantly since then, fortunately.

One zoo killing I remember discussing in a class happened in New York back in the 80s. IIRC, some kids climbed over the fence at the zoo to get into the Polar Bear's moat. One of them was mauled to death (the other two got away, I think). The bears were shot dead by police. Even then, people were debating whether the bears should have been killed and authorities pointed out that no enclosures are 'fool' proof. I'll see if I can find something on that story.

Kids meaning teenagers or little kids like this one and the one mauled by the painted dogs? I'm talking about little kids here. Not drunken idiot teenagers.