Tiger

Wednesday, Dec. 26, 2007 - 12:17 a.m.

Hope you all had a good Christmas. I did, and will post about it later this week.

But first, let me address something that happened locally that made the national news.

---

I am compelled to say something about the tiger mauling.

Tatiana, a 4 year old Siberian Tiger, was shot to death on Christmas Day after escaping from her enclosure at the San Francisco Zoo, killing one person and injuring two others.

Make no mistake. I'm extremely saddened to know that a human life was lost.

But I'm also very sad at the death of this tiger.

Here is her picture. This picture was taken after she bit her trainer on the arm last year and she'd been removed from all human contact except for the minimal neccesary occasions, such as when medical care was needed.

Her trainer was the one human whom she should have trusted and obeyed.

When a tiger bites her trainer in an agressive manner, nine times out of ten, something is wrong with the tiger.

And yet, incredibly, the San Francisco Zoo decided to keep that tiger on display.

You look at that tiger's picture and tell me if you think that tiger looks happy.

---

The San Francisco Zoo enclosures are among the worst in this nation. They are made predominantly of concrete, which is the most unnatural surface for any animal in the universe to be walking on all day, and the chilly in winter, foggy in summer ocean front location of the Zoo itself is appalling, considering the number of animals they keep there whose species are originally from temperate climates.

I will say for the record that I believe, with a few exceptions, that most zoos are cruel and exploitative and should be wiped from the earth; if a zoo cannot exactly reproduce an optimum living environment for an animal they wish to display, then the animal should not be housed there, period, end of sentence.

My prediction regarding this terrible incident is that the Zoo is going to be found negligent on a multitude of levels, and will be paying out several skajillion dollars in wrongful death settlements.

---

Like I said, I'll go ahead and post about my own Christmas Day at my in-laws, but probably not until tomorrow at the earliest. In the meantime, I hope you all had a really nice day.

That's it. Have a good Wednesday.

---

what you missed - what's next - leave a note
first post - cast page - diaryrings - top ten

THE LEGAL STUFF: All content on this site that was created by me is copyright 2003-infinity by Brin Marie McLaughlin. Steal my stuff and I'll squash you like a bug. All incoming email or any other form of communication with me is subject to publication or other distribution by me in whole or in part at my sole discretion. This diary features the sole opinions and experiences of one person, namely me, the person who is paying for this space. In the interest of safety and accountability, no anonymous input will ever be allowed here, ever, for any reason in the entire history of ever. Whenever there is a comments section appearing in this diary, it's to be considered part of my paid presence on the web, and shall be used by my readership to supplement the things I have written here with relevant information in a polite manner. Comments that do not fall in that category are subject to deletion at my whim. Your visit to my diary along with your use of my comments section constitutes the understanding of this statement. Anything else on these pages including any comments belongs to whoever created it. All external links are current as of the date of the entry in which they are first featured, but at no other time. News excerpts used here are for educational purposes and are permitted under the Fair Use Doctrine. Hold hands when you cross the street, and play nice.