Child mauled by tapir at Dublin Zoo!!! :(

keithclancy

OpenYourEyes wrote: »

I think someone with veterinary qualifications, and some knowledge of exotic and wild animals, would be more qualified to work in a zoo than a zoologist though?

And I say that as someone with a zoology degree, and who know's vets of varying levels of experience.

Would you say a Psychologist would make a good Prison Officer ?

Gyalist

I lived for many years in a small village on the Guyana/Brazil border and have been fortunate to see tapir in their natural environment.

They are normally very shy animals but the females are known to protect their young. They can move with surprising speed for their shape and size and have large sharp teeth and strong jaws.

I've seen tapir that liked to be petted but I'd never allow a child to get so close to a nursing mother.

OpenYourEyes

steddyeddy wrote: »

Well a vet wouldn't have the level of expertise in animal behavior and a zoologist would generally be required for a conservation programme.

I'm sure a vet that had an interest in or some experience (possibly abroad) with wild/exotic would have enough knowledge - and obviously in terms of modifications and improvements to their pen/habitat etc would be guided by international practice and developments, as would anyone else.

And a zoologist would be required for a conservation programme that involves wild release, but the day-to-day breeding programmes carried out in zoo's are basically exercises in animal husbandry - while there would be a zoologist/geneticist involved at a higher organistational level, I think many vets would be more than capable of handling things on the 'frontline' i.e. as a zookeeper.

jack presley

Whenever something like this happens, I'm always reminded of the Chris Rock sketch about the tiger attacking some handler at a zoo or something and the people saying that the tiger went crazy. Chris' line was that the tiger didn't go crazy, the tiger went tiger!

OpenYourEyes

keithclancy wrote: »

Would you say a Psychologist would make a good Prison Officer ?

Never given it much thought tbh :P

I don't think you're really comparing like with like though. Vets look after animals day-to-day preventing them getting sick or helping them get better when they're unhealthy - they're the kind of skills required for the majority of a zookeepers job.

While there should obviously be zoologists working at a zoo, I don't think its necessarily a bad thing having more of the keepers with veterinary experience rather than zoology experience.

Grayson

Deleted User wrote: »

There's a big difference between an animal that has been largely domesticated for a very long time (like a pig, a cat, a dog, etc.) and an animal that has always been predominantly wild.

No there isn't. It depends on two things
1) the species
2) how it was raised.

Some species are naturally violent. Most non mammels for example can't really be trained (try training a snake:)). Even with mammals some can't. But most are ok so long are they're raised correctly. This tapir was probably raised in captivity.

wolfpawnat

One thing I have noticed with many of the zoo keepers from the tv programme and my visits to the zoo. These "professionals" don't actually have zoological related degrees. Now of course they are not essential for the care of these animals as long as those in charge in general are suitably qualified such as the nutritionalists and vets. Rule 1 in this world NEVER get between a new mother and her baby, regardless of her species. My father suggested taking my newborn for a walk earlier this week. I nearly screamed the house down. Rationale is not a new mothers strongest attribute. That keeper(s) has a lot of explaining to do.

On a random side note. I can imagine Crumlin/Temple street were a bit baffled with how to treat the injuries.

ebbsy

Apparently the mother will bring the child to the Lion enclosure today.

Gyalist

jack presley wrote: »

Whenever something like this happens, I'm always reminded of the Chris Rock sketch about the tiger attacking some handler at a zoo or something and the people saying that the tiger went crazy. Chris' line was that the tiger didn't go crazy, the tiger went tiger!

It was a joke after Sigfried and Roy were attacked on stage by their white lion during a show in Vegas.

GLaDOS

Girl seems to be doing ok in hospital

http://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/toddler-stable-after-tapir-attack-at-dublin-zoo-603164.html

Seems like a major Fúck up on the zoo's part.

ixoy

I can see this bringing an end to supervised visits with animals for kids - a blanket rule being put in place to stop this happening again. A shame for all concerned.

greentea is just wrong

.

remsburgsgirl

Dublin Zoo deserve a slap on the wrist for this...I would have thought they'd have a bit more respect for their animals being new mama's...and would have thought they had a bit more cop on and knowledge not to have visits into a new mums enclosure...

And the mother of the two year old....don't get me started on her

xzanti

remsburgsgirl wrote: »

And the mother of the two year old....don't get me started on her

Bit harsh, no?

They are normally docile creatures, they're also vegetarians.. I'm sure the Mother trusted the expertise of the Zoo Keepers.. who, in this age of red tape and extensive safety measures were hardly likely to put the child in harms way..

I can only imagine the horror of both the parents and the child when it attacked.. I hope they recover quickly.

Tiddlypeeps

Grayson wrote: »

Actually, as someone who's had cats that have had litters, the mothers were always docile and friendly. They'd let us pick up the kittens no problem.

Ignoring the fact that cats are very different to tapirs this isn't a great example, the cats would have known and likely trusted you. Would the cats let complete strangers pick the kittens up no problem?

remsburgsgirl

xzanti wrote: »

Bit harsh, no?

They are normally docile creatures, they're also vegetarians.. I'm sure the Mother trusted the expertise of the Zoo Keepers.. who, in this age of red tape and extensive safety measures were hardly likely to put the child in harms way..

I can only imagine the horror of both the parents and the child when it attacked.. I hope they recover quickly.

No, I don't think it is a bit harsh.

Horses are vegetarians,
some of my horses I have had for years, some come and go...some are likely to kick the sh*te out of you on a good day, some are very chilled...

But...when any mare is even close to giving birth, and for quite some time after birth, I would not let my children near her or the foal...that's because I have respect for them and their new baby,
not because they are dangerous every other day of the week, most are far from it, but because no one can foresee how an animal is going to react after their young is born...I would expect to get my ass handed to me if I acted irresponsibly in their enclosure.

Just because this woman paid for a ticket to see the animals doesn't give her the right to abuse their space...she got hurt instinctively going to protect her 2 year old...did she not think this animal might do the same for its calf?


,....and of course I hope they recover quickly too, goes without saying, even if I am a bit harsh

1ZRed

I hope the tapir doesn't have to be put down, it's just another stupid human's fault, not the animal's.

Hownowcow

Gyalist wrote: »

It was a joke after Sigfried and Roy were attacked on stage by their white lion during a show in Vegas.

Now that's what I call a show.

April O Neill

LexieOnRale wrote: »

Jesus, even a cat would tear you asunder if you were at her kittens a week later.

No, she wouldn't! Unless she was a feral of course. Mammy cats tend to be quite calm when you handle their kittens. Watchful, but calm.

GLaDOS

remsburgsgirl wrote: »

No, I don't think it is a bit harsh.

Horses are vegetarians,
some of my horses I have had for years, some come and go...some are likely to kick the sh*te out of you on a good day, some are very chilled...

But...when any mare is even close to giving birth, and for quite some time after birth, I would not let my children near her or the foal...that's because I have respect for them and their new baby,
not because they are dangerous every other day of the week, most are far from it, but because no one can foresee how an animal is going to react after their young is born...I would expect to get my ass handed to me if I acted irresponsibly in their enclosure.

Just because this woman paid for a ticket to see the animals doesn't give her the right to abuse their space...she got hurt instinctively going to protect her 2 year old...did she not think this animal might do the same for its calf?


,....and of course I hope they recover quickly too, goes without saying, even if I am a bit harsh

I think the point is if the zoo keeper said it was ok, she would have trusted them as they're the expert and would be close at hand, and presumably had done this before.

xzanti

remsburgsgirl wrote: »

But...when any mare is even close to giving birth, and for quite some time after birth, I would not let my children near her or the foal...that's because I have respect for them and their new baby,
not because they are dangerous every other day of the week, most are far from it, but because no one can foresee how an animal is going to react after their young is born...I would expect to get my ass handed to me if I acted irresponsibly in their enclosure.

Oh I agree with you, the animal should have been left in peace with her calf.. but I still don't blame the Mother of the child.. it's the Zoo's responsibility to make sure the animals are not available for petting when they are of a volatile disposition.

April O Neill

Tiddlypeeps wrote: »

Would the cats let complete strangers pick the kittens up no problem?

If they're tame, yeah, usually no problem.

noddyone2

SEPT 23 1989 wrote: »

This little girls life has been changed forever and i hope she will be compensated accordingly

Ah yes, a few grand will fix up everything.:mad:

MarkyMark22

Frequent visitor to Dublin Zoo but if the Tapir is killed I will be boycotting for the foreseeable future.

Dont know what the staff were thinking by bringing two female visitors into see a female animal who had just given birth recently.

Anyone with the slightest knowledge of animals would know that the animal was bound to get aggressive for fear of its young, never mind trained experienced zoo keepers.

remsburgsgirl

Yes, she is not as much of a dope as the zookeeper or the zoo people who put this 'activity' in place....she trusted the experienced zookeeper, but I am still of the opinion that she, as an adult and a parent, should have realised it might not be a good place to bring a 2 year old

Duggy747

Extreme fùck up by whoever allowed them to get that close to the Tapir, especially since it was a new mother.

Domesticated animals are one thing, but predominately wild animals cannot be treated like they're docile animals who'd love a good rub. When they're spooked they're capable of anything to protect themselves.

It could have been worse, though still very serious, but the tapir could have easily started biting at her face leaving worse disfigurements.

Culpepper

Probably the most dangerous animal on a farm is a heifer on her first calf, and a jungle animal would surely be a lot more unpredictable?

Having said that, I watched the RTE program about Dublin Zoo and those tapirs seemed to be quite docile, certainly when interacting with their keepers.

The toddler or the tapir cannot carry any blame here, the child's mother was probably told that there was no danger, so it's hard to see how the Zoo wouldn't be ultimately held responsibly.

However, we don't know the sequence of events leading up to the attack.

Hopefully the mother and child will make a full recovery in due course!

spiderman1885

Anyone speculated that the zoo keeper could be the mother of the child!!!

Dunnnn dunnnn dunnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

I Heart Internet

Could be that the tapir was very used to, and comfortable with, adults but was nervous of a child that was as her eye-level and probably moving erratically. Being a new mother she must have assumed it was some sort of threat.

Poor, poor judgement leaving a 2 year old in there.

suicide_circus

tapirattackinjurylawyers4u.co.uk

Tombo2001

1ZRed wrote: »

I hope the tapir doesn't have to be put down, it's just another stupid human's fault, not the animal's.

Why would the Tapir need to be put down?

Its not a domesticated pet that people are walking around a park.

A tiger would do the same thing, no one is calling for them to be put down.

I'd imagine the solution here is, lets be more careful of Tapirs in the future.

steddyeddy

Tombo2001 wrote: »

Why would the Tapir need to be put down?

Its not a domesticated pet that people are walking around a park.

A tiger would do the same thing, no one is calling for them to be put down.

I'd imagine the solution here is, lets be more careful of Tapirs in the future.

I think the fear arises from the Irish solution of making some up some bs about an animal in order to kill it. Eg the sea eagles will take sheep so poison them or the classic pine martins are vermin we need to kill them!

1ZRed

Tombo2001 wrote: »

Why would the Tapir need to be put down?

Its not a domesticated pet that people are walking around a park.

A tiger would do the same thing, no one is calling for them to be put down.

I'd imagine the solution here is, lets be more careful of Tapirs in the future.

I read somewhere before a long while ago about a very rare and endangered tiger that was put down after it killed a human who had made the mistake of going near it's enclosure. Something like under a thousand of those tigers existed vs 7 billion humans, yet it was still put down even though it was the human's fault.

Wouldn't surprise me if people called to put it down, much like that dolphin who was attacking people down in Clare. People are just idiots.

jack presley

The fact that she has a young calf/pup (whatever you call it) gives me some hope that they won't put her down. I'll be disgusted if they do.

Has there been any word on her status actually?

steddyeddy

From sky news. The bit in bold makes me wonder what if anything Dublin zoo where thinking. Even so I acually feel srry for the staff members involved. They must feel like crap now.

A Brazilian tapir has attacked a young girl and her mother during a trip to a zoo.

The attack happened during a supervised visit within one of the enclosures at Dublin Zoo. The child's mother was injured when she went to save her child.

The zoo says the incident was "an unfortunate accident" and said an investigation was under way.

A tapir is a large usually docile mammal, which looks a bit like a cross between a long-nosed pig and a small horse.

The zoo said a first aid team went to the scene immediately. The girl was taken to Dublin's Temple Street Children's Hospital. Her mother went to the Mater Hospital.

The youngster suffered deep abdomen and arm injuries and is understood to have had surgery.

In June, staff at Dublin Zoo celebrated the birth of a baby tapir to mother Rio, which is believed to have attacked the child.

Rio's female baby is called Jenny and her father is called Marmaduke. Marmaduke is not thought to have been involved.

The tapir is normally vegetarian and many species are endangered in the wild in South East Asia and Latin America.

Related to rhinos and horses, the tapir's long, flexible snout helps collect leaves, shoots, fruit and small branches to eat.

They have strong jaws and sharp teeth which they use to defend themselves if under threat.
The tapir family at Dublin zoo: Jenny, Rio and Marmaduke
Dublin Zoo said the attack happened on Thursday during one of its regular supervised animal visits.

A spokeswoman said: "The welfare of our visitors and animals is of paramount importance and all steps are taken by our experienced staff to ensure optimum safety.

"Management at the zoo has launched an investigation into this regrettable occurrence and is reviewing all of its procedures with respect to supervised animal visits.

"Dublin Zoo would like to underline this was very much an isolated incident."

The spokeswoman said the zoo understands the mother and toddler who were injured are recovering well.

Attacks on humans by tapirs are not unknown. Although shy, when scared they can defend themselves.

In 1998, a keeper at a zoo in Oklahoma City was mauled and had an arm severed after opening the door to a female tapir's enclosure to push food inside.

The tapir's two-month-old baby was also inside the cage at the time.

In 2006, a Costa Rican politician became lost in the one of the country's national parks and was found by a search party with a "nasty bite" from a wild tapir.

**Vai**

The whole "launching an investigation" bit makes me laugh. Dont let kids near wild animals who recently had offspring, simple.

Cunning Stunt

jack presley wrote: »

The fact that she has a young calf/pup (whatever you call it) gives me some hope that they won't put her down. I'll be disgusted if they do.

Has there been any word on her status actually?

Yeah I hope to God they don't do anything to the animal. She had her little calf in the enclosure with her and some doofus let complete strangers in. What were they thinking? Of course there will most likely be some eejits calling for her to be put down anyway...:rolleyes:

I also hope the little kid is OK though and it doesn't have any long-term adverse affects on her physically or mentally.

spiderman1885

spiderman1885 wrote: »

Anyone speculated that the zoo keeper could be the mother of the child!!!

Dunnnn dunnnn dunnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

We were just talking about that possibility. We'd never heard of these "supervised animal encounters" for the general public (which doesn't mean they don't exist!) and we wondered if the family were somehow connected to the zoo itself.

1ZRed wrote: »

I read somewhere before a long while ago about a very rare and endangered tiger that was put down after it killed a human who had made the mistake of going near it's enclosure.

Yep, sad but true.

The animal, named Abu and thought to be one of only 120 white tigers in the world, was put down. The Zion Wildlife Gardens in the northern city of Whangarei were closed ... and the tiger destroyed

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1188880/Zoo-keeper-mauled-death-rare-white-tiger-horrified-tourists.html

steddyeddy

Cunning Stunt wrote: »

Yeah I hope to God they don't do anything to the animal. She had her little calf in the enclosure with her and some doofus let complete strangers in. What were they thinking? Of course there will most likely be some eejits calling for her to be put down anyway...:rolleyes:

I also hope the little kid is OK though and it doesn't have any long-term adverse affects on her physically or mentally.

The head of Dublin zoo is a zoologist and fairly well respected. He won't listen to eejits calling for her to be put down hopefully!

steddyeddy

Dublin Zoo's facebok update!

As you may have heard, there was an accident involving a mother and her child
in the Brazilian tapir area yesterday during one of our supervised animal
encounters.

We are all deeply upset by this and our immediate concern is for the health
and wellbeing of the visitors involved in this accident.

Just to let you know, thankfully, both the mother and child are recovering.


We would also like to assure you that absolutely no harm or punishment will
come to the tapir as a result of this incident.

The bit in bold made my day. I'm delighted the child is making a recovery aswell!

**Vai**

Thank ****. Common sense wins through. Now...that dolphin...

CdeC

The childs mom should be given 10 minutes alone with the baby Tapir.

Just to even things out.

qo2cj1dsne8y4k

CdeC wrote: »

The childs mom should be given 10 minutes alone with the baby Tapir.

Just to even things out.

Why? It's not like the mommy tapir is going to take its child to the child's home and infringe on its personal space. If it did then the child's mom would be well within her rights if she thought the child was in danger

anncoates

LexieOnRale wrote: »

Why? It's not like the mommy tapir is going to take its child to the child's home and infringe on its personal space. If it did then the child's mom would be well within her rights if she thought the child was in danger

J.O.K.E

1ZRed

Deleted User wrote: »

We were just talking about that possibility. We'd never heard of these "supervised animal encounters" for the general public (which doesn't mean they don't exist!) and we wondered if the family were somehow connected to the zoo itself.



Yep, sad but true.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1188880/Zoo-keeper-mauled-death-rare-white-tiger-horrified-tourists.html

120 white tigers in the world and 7 billion of us **** on earth? I don't care if the tiger was the most blood thirsty thing on earth, if there's only 120 of them and he's locked in his enclosure what harm is he? Just some idiot that killed himself by going near a known dangerous animal.

The sad thing is I see this happening to so many endangered species over the next few decades. Humans are nothing at all so special that were above other animals and we have to kill one that kills us. Makes me angry sometimes.

diomed

I blame pet farms. Once you get a taste for it you want to move on to the hard stuff.

Yellow121

Why is everyone excusing this tapir?
If I entered someone's house with a 2 year old in my arms and there was mother of a newborn in the house, then she attacks my baby and me for no reason, biting my babies belly and all. It would result in her heading to prison.
What I'm saying is, this tapir should be locked up for a good long time, that'll teach her.

remsburgsgirl

Yellow121 wrote: »

Why is everyone excusing this tapir?
If I entered someone's house with a 2 year old in my arms and there was mother of a newborn in the house, then she attacks my baby and me for no reason, biting my babies belly and all. It would result in her heading to prison.
What I'm saying is, this tapir should be locked up for a good long time, that'll teach her.

:pac:

Would 'time served' count in her sentencing?

1ZRed

Yellow121 wrote: »

Why is everyone excusing this tapir?
If I entered someone's house with a 2 year old in my arms and there was mother of a newborn in the house, then she attacks my baby and me for no reason, biting my babies belly and all. It would result in her heading to prison.
What I'm saying is, this tapir should be locked up for a good long time, that'll teach her.

She lives in a zoo ffs

It's hardly the amazon for her

dizzywizlw

I too let my child have access to wild animals.