« Back to Exotic Incidents Database

Tiger Attacks and Injures Animal Sanctuary Founder

Incident Date:
04/25/2019
Location:
Valentine, AZ - USA
Facility Name:
Keepers of the Wild
Facility Type:
Non-accredited Facility (RSZ)
Incident Category:
Escape/Attack resulting in human injury (HI)
Species:
Big Cats
Animal:
Bengal Tiger
Animal disposition:
Other

Summary:

A Bengal tiger named Bowie attacked a nonprofit animal rescue’s founder in northwestern Arizona and will not be put down after the man said it was his fault.

Keepers of the Wild, located in Valentine, Arizona, confirmed in a statement posted Wednesday that Jonathan Kraft suffered multiple wounds and two broken bones when a Bengal tiger pushed an open gate and attacked. Kraft was working to protect animals from heavy rain, lightning and hail during a storm Monday when the attack occurred. Kraft took the blame for what he called an “accident” and said “these situations occur when there is human error.”

“I was concerned for his welfare and did not stay focused on him,” Kraft said. “It only takes a fraction of a second for a captive wild animal to revert to their instinctual behavior.”

Action take by Born Free USA:

Notes: