[FEL-L] Denver Zookeeper Dies From Jaguar Attack

[BigCatSimba at aol.com]

Updated:2007-02-25 08:15:42
Denver Zookeeper Dies From Jaguar Attack
By CHASE SQUIRES

<Photo>

AP
Jorge, a six-year-old male jaguar, was fatally shot after it approached 
emergency workers treating the zookeeper it attacked. 

DENVER (Feb. 25) - Police and zoo officials were investigating what led a 
140-pound jaguar to maul a zookeeper to death in the doorway of its exhibit. 

The cat was fatally shot when it approached emergency workers trying to save 
the woman, zoo officials said. 

The zoo closed after Saturday's shooting. It planned to reopen Sunday, but 
the feline building was to remain closed, officials said. 

"We are deeply saddened by this loss," zoo President and CEO Clayton Freiheit 
said in a statement. "This keeper was a part of our family and we too are 
grieving the loss of one of our own." 

Zoo officials did not know how the attack occurred or what prompted it, 
spokeswoman Amy Sarno said. 

Their investigation may center on how the jaguar encountered the zookeeper. 
Under zoo policy, staff cannot be in any large cat exhibit when the animal is 
there. 

The zookeeper had undergone regular safety training for the exhibit, shadowed 
veteran keepers and attended mandatory safety meetings, officials said. 

The jaguar, a 6-year-old male named Jorge, was shot by a zoo employee and the 
public was never at risk, according to the zoo. The cat had been at the 
Denver Zoo for nearly two years. 

The zoo added a 16-month-old female jaguar named Caipora in December, 
according to its Web site. The female was to be paired with Jorge when she was old 
enough. 

http://news.aol.com/topnews/articles/_a/denver-zookeeper-dies-from-jaguar-atta
ck/20070224210009990001
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://www.breuckman.com/pipermail/felines-l/attachments/20070225/8a80887f/attachment.html