A Siberian tiger has earlier this week attacked and killed a zoo keeper not far from Nanjing, while only yesterday elsewhere, another two tigers escaped from their enclosure, after also attacking a zoo keeper who later died. The tigers were later both shot.
It was approximately 08:00 on 23 May, in Bengbu of Anhui Province, when a tiger keeper in Zhanggang Shan Zoo was attacked during his daily work. He was rushed to the hospital and was there declared dead.
Later on Sunday morning, reporters learned from the emergency department in Bengbu First People’s Hospital that when the injured man arrived at about 09:00, there were obvious bites and scratches on his neck, head and back.
The victim, a Mr. Yang, 55, had been a tiger keeper in the Zoo for nearly 20 years, reported Nanjing Daily.
By noon the same day, the Zoo had closed and hung signs on its gates, saying, “Construction site; no entry”.
Bengbu is not so far from Nanjing, just across the border with Anhui Province. There, the Zoo was the second largest in Anhui when it was completed. The Zoo’s Siberian tiger breeding technology is well-known across East China and within the animal community nationwide. At present, there are four Siberian tigers in the Zoo.
Then just yesterday morning, the second tiger attack took place.
Danjiang Peacock Valley is located in Xichuan County of Nanyang City in Henan Province. In addition to blue, while and flower peacocks, the Valley also raises more than 20 kinds of other animals, including ostriches, alpaca, sika deer and tigers.
The attack occurred when a keeper was bitten while feeding tigers. Two tigers escaped their enclosure, while the injured keeper, surnamed Jia, was taken to hospital. Jia died later after ineffective rescue attempts.
Local authorities spun into action, activating emergency services, together with public security, armed police, forestry, fire, health and other departments, to evacuate people in the surroundings.
The tigers were found still within the confines of the Valley, but many attempts at trapping them failed. The two were then shot dead at 14:20 and 15:12.
The fact that the decision was taken to kill the two tigers, rather than tranquilise them, has not been lost on animal lovers who read the story on Baidu’s content-creation platform, Baijiahao.
“Did you have to kill them?”, said one angry netizen. “Since you choose the birds and the beasts, you have to make safety warning, protection and emergency treatment plans.”
According to a preliminary investigation by local authorities, the two tigers were owned by a circus in Suzhou City of Anhui Province and were on lease to Danjiang Peacock Valley.
That two incidents involving tigers occur within 2 days of each other highlights the repeated occurrences of attacks on keepers that expose hidden dangers in animal safety management in China remaining unaddressed.
According to regulations, in places where beasts are raised, there should be compartments in cages to ensure the isolation of humans and animals during feeding and cleaning. Management standards also call for breeders to be familiar with emergency plans, and accepting of daily drills and regular training.
But are the rules and regulations strictly enforced? After the Bengbu attack, local authorities initially believed the incident to be caused by the breeder entering the cage to clean up without ensuring that isolation area was locked.
But media has also reported some zoos attributing the accident to a shortage of funds, insufficient professional staff and outdated hardware.
There is certainly no question of a lack of money for China’s zoo’s, particularly in the wake of COVID. Nanjing’s very own Hongshan Forest Zoo earlier this year resorted to putting many of its animals up for adoption by individuals, schools and other entities, as this publication reported at the time.
