America's animal hoarder

[matthew]

Anyone watch this on Channel 4 last night?

48 endangered and exotic animals like Tigers, Lions and Leopards shot dead after they escaped from a mans private zoo.

Amazing how some states and country's still don't have laws preventing the capture of endangered species.

I really think it would have been less of a tragedy if 48 people had died - 1% of India's wild Tiger population effectively wiped out after this

 

[vic123]

I recorded this last night and watched it today.

I had predicted that the world would be feeling put off by the trigger happy nature of the police response and, sure enough, the hate calls came in right on queue. Pearls of wizdom such as, *in my best, "praise the law'd" middle U.S accent...*

"HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF A DAMNED, HONEST TO JESUS TRANQUILIZER GUN?" and
"BOY, IMMA' GET MY GUN AN' IMMA KILL YOU! HOW CAN Y'ALL SHOOT DARN INNOCENT ANIMALS?"

...such sound and sensible strategic advice!

Of course, with 50 or so dangerous animals on the prowl in a small, well poplated town such careful, conservationist thoughts have to be shelved. One of the experts said that using a tranq gun was out of the question since those drugs can take up to ten minutes to work. With so many animals to watch and time running out (people can't spend forever in their homes) the only option was to shoot to kill. It was a sad day for animal lovers and a sad day for the police officers who had no choice but to act in the way that they did. I mean, 18 tigers on the loose! 18 tigers!?!?!?!?!

Perhaps the most shocking aspect of the whole affair was what happened to the animal's owner, Terry Thompson. He had deliberately cut through the animal's cages and allowed them to escape. He then entered into a tiger's enclosure, stripped himself half naked, shot himself through the head and allowed the tiger to eat him.

A total, freaking psychopath. Although, thinking about it...eaten by a tiger...COOL WAY TO GO OUT!!!