September 10, 2009 Mendon, MA A 4-year-old child suffered a minor laceration to her right cheek after she was struck by a deer at Southwick’s Zoo. This was the second incident involving a deer-related injury at the zoo in a month. Other
September 10, 2009 Lakeland, FL Two Burmese pythons, one 17-ft-long and the other 11-ft-long, were removed from a Florida home. The resident told police officials that he owned the snakes but did not have the required permits to keep them. Charges were filed against the resident. Reptiles
September 9, 2009 Allentown, PA A 6-ft-long alligator was found near Jordan Park. Authorities may never know how the male alligator ended up in the park. The alligator was turned over to a reptile farm in Marshalls Creek in Monroe County. Reptiles
September 9, 2009 Columbia, MO A 3-1/2-ft-long alligator seized from an apartment where it was living in a bathtub was turned over to the Central Missouri Humane Society. The possessors faced a fine for housing an exotic animal without proper license. Meanwhile, the Society was working to place Allygator, as the staff affectionately named him. Reptiles
September 8, 2009 Elmira Heights, NY A 10-ft-long python snake escaped her possessor. Police charged a 20-year-old man with two counts of having an exotic pet without proper permits. Police cautioned residents not to touch the snake if they found her but to call the authorities immediately. Reptiles
August 31, 2009 Vancouver, WA Clark County officials searched for a small alligator spotted in the area. They theorized that someone kept the alligator as a “pet” and simply released her to the wild. Reptiles
August 30, 2009 South Bend, IN South Bend authorities reported that a big cat was spotted on the city’s east side near the Potawatomi Zoo. The cat was not one of the zoo’s animals, according to reports. The cat eluded the police and was not captured. Small Cats
August 29, 2009 Indianapolis, IN A 37-year old man was bitten by his pet kinkajou. The kinkajou was severely ill when the man was bitten and died shortly after the bite. The man was hospitalized and treated for blastomycosis, a fungal infection which causes pneumonia, disseminated infection, or rarely, cutaneous disease due to the bite. Other
August 29, 2009 Indianapolis, IN A 9-year-old pet kinkajou named Mynah became very ill, and bit her owner on the finger shortly before dying. A month later, his finger had swollen and his joints locked up. Tests revealed that he had a fungal infection called blastomycosis. He was treated and recovered. Other
August 27, 2009 Myrtle Beach, FL A man who received citation in March 2009 for keeping a hyena in his backyard agreed not to return the hyena to the city limits. Other