Posted on 01/11/2008 4:35:02 PM PST by doug from upland
San Francisco Zoo in new animal escape alert: reports 1 hour ago
SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) — A leopard and a polar bear came close to escaping from enclosures at San Francisco Zoo, reports said Friday, less than three weeks after a visitor was mauled to death by a tiger at the facility.
The San Francisco Chronicle reported on its website that zookeepers told the paper a female polar bear climbed the wall of its enclosure on January 3 while a snow leopard chewed through a temporary enclosure on Thursday.
The incidents come after the Christmas Day escape of a Siberian Tiger from its enclosure at the zoo. The tiger killed a teenager and mauled two men before being shot dead by police.
Zoo officials initially said they were baffled at how the tiger managed to escape from its enclosure, which was ringed by a moat and a wall.
However they later admitted the protective wall was only 12.5 feet high -- four feet lower than the 16.4 feet recommended as standard for a tiger exhibit by the US Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
San Francisco Zoo officials were not immediately available for comment on the reports Friday.
However a Zoo spokesman quoted by the Chronicle denied the polar bear had been attempting to escape and insisted there had been no risk to the public in either case.
Zoo spokesman Sam Singer confirmed that a 100-pound male snow leopard ripped a four inch hole in a mesh cage on Thursday as a zookeeper attempted to move the animal.
In the other incident involving a wild-born polar bear, the animal had climbed the wall of its exhibit as zoo officials attempted to usher her into a night enclosure.
The bear was forced off the wall with a fire hose. The Chronicle reported that the zoo raised the height of the bear's enclosure the following day after it was found to be lower than recommended guidelines.
However spokesman Singer denied the bear had been attempting to escape, describing the incident as normal wild animal behavior.
"That doesn't sound like an escape attempt at all to me," he told the Chronicle. "Whoever told you that is someone who is manipulative and is using an incident not at all out of the ordinary and blowing it out of proportion ... it's an unfortunate effort to scare the public and press and it's deplorable."
"The polar bear did not try to escape whatsoever."
It appears that OJ is being returned to his cage.
Many of these enclosures, except for the primate cages, date back to close to WWII. The tiger pit was built in 1948, and I suspect a lot of other things at the SF Zoo haven’t had many upgrades in the last 60+ years, either.
God almighty,that place is a zoo !
In the other incident involving a wild-born polar bear, the animal had climbed the wall of its exhibit as zoo officials attempted to usher her into a night enclosure.
They must have been taunting it. /s
The news is getting around I see.
They can’t take it any more. I get that feeling - a need to escape - whenever I find myself in San Francisco.
It reads like the critters didn’t want to come inside for the night:’)
Yep, the word is out.
Sounds like it makes the zoo a whole lot exciting-er.
Can you bring your guns?
The animals know that the Big One is coming!
They need to stop operating on a honor system.
How does he know that, did he ask the bear ???
Well, if you drop your keys on your way out of town, just remember -- Kick then down the road to San Mateo before you bend over to pick them up. :=)
The cat was not near as dangerous as the tiger and it did not escape or even come close. The polar bear would not likely go on a rampage but might try to kill and eat an animal or human if it got loose and was hungry—it would be looking for a seal but would settle for a dog.
They should put Gavin Newsome in a cage.
The animals were probably watching Fox news and heard the enclosures were 12 ft instead of 18 ft.
They should let all the animals out ...
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