Eight-year-old Malayan tiger, Eko, held at the Naples Zoo in Southwest Florida, was killed last week when an employee attempted to pet him, and was grabbed by his arm. To free the man, the tiger – touted as an “Ambassador Animal” by the zoo – was shot dead.
An All-Too-Common Fate
Eko joins a growing number of animals killed after they found themselves – through no fault of their own – in dangerously close proximity to humans. These include…
- Harambe the gorilla at the Cincinnati Zoo, who was shot and killed in 2016 after a four-year-old boy fell into his enclosure;
- Two lions at the Santiago Metropolitan Zoo in Chile who, the very same year, were killed when a man entered their enclosure and taunted them;
- One of 11 African painted dogs at the Pittsburgh Zoo, who was killed after a two-year-old boy fell into their enclosure in 2012 and was tragically mauled to death;
- A four-year-old Siberian tiger named Tatiana, held at the San Francisco Zoo, who was killed in 2007 when she lunged out of her enclosure and mauled a man after a group of young boys threw rocks at her (it was later revealed that her enclosure was four feet under the minimum required height); and
- Two polar bears at Prospect Park Zoo, who were killed in 1987 when an 11-year-old climbed into their enclosure to swim in the moat.
During each of the dangerous incidents, the animals’ violent deaths – in addition to the injuries, and even deaths, of the humans involved – were the tragic outcome.
An Ambassador for Tigers in the Wild?
Eko’s incident was no different. A man hired by the zoo as a cleaner entered an “unauthorized area” and reached his arm through the fencing of Eko’s enclosure. The sheriff’s deputy found the man with his arm in Eko’s mouth, and after attempting to free the man, “was forced to shoot” Eko. Once shot, Eko retreated to the back of his enclosure, where he was later sedated and died shortly after. The man suffered serious injuries and was airlifted to the nearest hospital.
The Naples Zoo had apparently acquired Eko in early 2020 as part of their efforts to “save wild tigers.” At this time, the zoo stated that Eko would be “a great ambassador for his species.” In truth, zoos do very little to support wildlife conservation; Eko was not an ambassador for his species, but rather a mascot for the zoo that held him prisoner and would ultimately take his life.
It Is Time to End Big Cat Captivity
Since 1990, there have been at least 400 dangerous incidents like Eko’s involving captive big cats in 46 states throughout the country. Big cats claimed the lives of at least five children and 20 adults and caused serious injuries to others, including lost limbs and other traumatic injuries. When such horrifying incidents occur at zoos, which should theoretically have the staff and enclosure safety to prevent such attacks, imagine the damage that inevitably occurs when someone keeps a big cat in their backyard or basement, or when people pose for photos, play tug-of-war, or feed these animals as part of experiences that many zoos currently provide. Even when born in captivity and raised by humans, big cats cannot be domesticated. Unlike companion animals, like dogs and domestic cats, who have been domesticated over thousands of years, big cat species will always retain their instinct to hunt and attack.
The Big Cat Public Safety Act H.R. 263/S. 1210, initially introduced to Congress in 2021, would prevent these horrific incidents by banning the private ownership of and public interactions with several dangerous big cat species, including tigers, lions, cheetahs, cougars, leopards, jaguars, and any hybrids of these species. While the law would not prevent the keeping of big cats in facilities like the Naples Zoo, it would save the lives of countless animals and people and perhaps lay the groundwork for additional big cat bans.
Please reach out to your lawmakers and urge them to support the Big Cat Public Safety Act!
Keep Wildlife in the Wild,
Devan
