On July 31, 1983, a visitor to Yellowstone National Park was gored to death while trying to get his picture taken with a bison. Since 1990, there have been 151 dangerous incidents, 40 severe injuries and 11 adult deaths in the United States caused by pet big cats. In one recorded instance at Smoky Mountain National Park, a woman smeared honey on her toddler's hand, hoping a black bear would "lick it off" for a fine photo op. The bear, of course, did not understand 'photo op' and ate the child's hand instead.
Bison typically tip the scale at a hefty 2,000 pounds. Black bears average 600. Big cats run the gamut from 100 to 800 pounds, depending on the sex and species. So, what I want to know is: When did humans become so blasé about the power of wild animals? Is it because of too many Disney-esque animal cartoons? Are people so out of touch with reality that they believe Baloo is an accurate portrayal of a bear, and Simba a realistic look at a lion?
On Oct. 3, magician Ray Horn was injured onstage by the tiger named Montecore. What actually happened is still in dispute. Horn apparently tripped, and the tiger, startled, lunged at him, grabbed his neck and dragged him off stage. Horn remains in critical condition and is lucky to be alive. So is Montecore.
In the days following the attack, reports of tiger atrocities and the viciousness of Montecore infiltrated the media. A television newscast discussed a female zoo worker whose arm was bitten by a tiger she had taken care of for years. On Oct. 6, a pet tiger was removed from a Manhattan apartment building after its owner went to the hospital with multiple bite wounds. A Manhattan apartment. Who can blame it for attacking?
A tiger is a wild animal. So are bears, no matter how close they come when ransacking a picnic site. So are Yellowstone's bison. In 1989, a Yellowstone park ranger received a report that a parent placed their child on top of a bison to take a photo. The bison stood for it that time, and all parties left unscathed. That case was a fortunate exception.
When wild animals kill or severely injure people, there is never a question of who is at fault. In the Smoky Mountains, bears are tranquilized routinely and relocated to remote parts of the woods to keep them away from humans. Though it is not national park policy to euthanize wild animals involved in human injury, sometimes the parks do anyway. As Lee Whittlesey points out in his book, "Death in Yellowstone," "Why should we humans do anything to an animal that might hasten that animal's having to pay for the incident with its life?"
There only are about 5,000 tigers left in the wild. In the last decade alone, 54 big cats kept as pets in the United States have been killed as a result of injuries to their owners. Though Horn expressed his desire that Montecore not be harmed, such action may still come. In such a widely publicized case, the animal has been blamed for doing what it knows to do - acting upon instinct and being, by nature, wild and unpredictable.
People who choose to interact with these animals are taking a risk. With Horn and other animal experts, it is a calculated risk based on experience and knowledge. With common tourists, it is usually an irrational risk based on lack of respect and understanding. But in either case, when the animal's instinctual nature is revealed and human injury results, the animal is painted a villain. People are never to blame. I respect Horn for his wish to protect the tiger.
Too bad the rest of the world has to place blame. Too bad the blame will be placed on an animal unable to understand the consequences of its actions. Too bad there may be yet another casualty in the age-old saga of animal domestication.
Katie Kelberlau is a religious studies and history junior. Reach her at katie.kelberlau@asu.edu.
