Ohio police: Owner set wild animals loose before committing suicide

[n2doc]

Associated Press / October 19, 2011

ZANESVILLE, Ohio—Townspeople cowered indoors Wednesday as deputies with high-powered rifles hunted down and killed lions, bears and dozens of other exotic beasts that escaped from a wild-animal preserve after the owner threw their cages open and committed suicide.

After an all-night hunt, at least 30 of the 48 escaped animals had been gunned down. As of mid-morning, officers were still hunting for a grizzly bear, mountain lion and monkey.

Schools closed, parents were warned to keep children and pets indoors and flashing signs along highways told motorists, "Caution exotic animals" and "Stay in vehicle."

"It's like Noah's ark, like, wrecking right here in Zanesville, Ohio," said Jack Hanna, former director of the Columbus Zoo. "Noah's ark filled with tigers and lions and all leopards and a few monkeys and whatever, and it crashes here and all of a sudden they're out there."

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2011/10/19/sheriff_exotic_animal_farm_owner_killed_self/?p1=News_links

[Cronus Protagonist]

1. The Army of the 12 Monkeys

:P

[sinkingfeeling]

2. Maybe he wanted to take his animals with him and didn't have the heart to kill them himself.

[AtomicKitten]

3. Not likely. He had been cited before for animal cruelty. /nt

[RaleighNCDUer]

5. Many people who are cited for animal cruelty are well intentioned

and caring people, who happen to be too incompetent to do what they are trying to do. They get in over their heads and wind up doing more harm than help.

[AtomicKitten]

7. The citations were for "animal abuse and neglect," so you could be correct.

They've killed most of them :cry:, a couple "cats" were hit by cars, and the rest are on the lam.

[Gin]

4. wonder why they didn't eat him....maybe he fed them before he

killed himself.

[geek_sabre]

18. I read an article stating that his body was "bothered" by the animals

Whatever that means.

[dtexdem]

6. Well, suicide has been described as a most-aggessive form of death -- tripled here.

But was it really suicide? The owner had been previously cited for animal cruelty. Could it be that the animals plotted their revenge? ;-)

[DocMac]

8. That guy shot himself.

So unless those animals learned how to pull a trigger, it's not a case of revenge lol.

The police killed all but three of the animals. It was all over the local news here in Pittsburgh.

[Liberal_in_LA]

9. poor animals

[geardaddy]

10. +1000

[JohnnyRingo]

11. How many cops will have the animals stuffed and mounted?

How often does someone get to put a trophy above the fireplace mantle without going on a big game safari? I imagine some of the dark humor proned officers at least got their picture taken with a foot on the beast while they hold the head.

Too bad that dick had to let them loose and put the animals in that situation though. I hope they aren't killing some of the less dangerous pets like the monkey. I wonder why they can't use tranquilizer guns?

on edit:
Jack Hanna is on MSNBC dressed in a safari hat and what appears to be a duster. Hahaha.

[seabeyond]

14. and how many of these cops are feeling bad at what they are ordered to do? nt

[JohnnyRingo]

15. Of course that's assumed.

I was just laying out a bizarre scenario that could accompany such a rare occurrence.
I hope you aren't hinting that I would consider such an act. I added the last paragraph purposely to clarify that.

[seabeyond]

16. oh gosh no. not at all

but reading your post, i know men, even men that hunt, that would take no pleasure in killing these animals. i thought about them

[sunwyn]

12. Sounds like a last act of cruelty against the animals. If there is an afterlife, I hope this guy

gets his just rewards.

[lame54]

13. is it a No Capture order - only shoot to kill?

[a la izquierda]

17. Such a waste of life...the animals, that is.

I live about 30 miles from Zanesville. I felt so awful when I heard this story last night- I knew what the police were up against (we've had a heck of a rainstorm the past 24 hours here in central Ohio, and once you leave Zanesville there's not much out there). The logistics of this whole thing must've been nightmarish.
I have to say, I was a little sketched out taking my dog out this morning, as I live in a wooded area. Wolves could probably range 30 miles in a night.

[JohnnyRingo]

19. To ice the cake on this fiasco, I learned that Gov Kasich overturned a democratic law to allow this

The wildlife act passed by former governor Strickland that stopped people from amassing their own zoos of dangerous carnivores was quietly overturned soon after Kasich began his term along with everything else Strickland did.

Kasich is like an egotistical bully who sees good & bad in terms of political party.