Zoos Review Housing After S.F. Mauling

[December 28, 2007]  PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) -- Officials at zoos around the country say their housing for big cats is safe, but in light of the fatal mauling in San Francisco some are reviewing their procedures and even taking new measures of steep pen walls.

Several zoos said their enclosures for tigers had walls significantly higher than the 12 1/2-foot wall in the San Francisco Zoo exhibit where a tiger escaped Tuesday and mauled three people, killing a teenager. In some cases the fences were curved inward or electrified.

"We actually just double-checked our moats and measured the walls basically to give ourselves peace of mind," said Dan Subaitis, general curator of the Phoenix Zoo. That facility's two Sumatran tigers are housed in a moated exhibit confined by a cement wall 16 feet high.

At the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in Columbus, Ohio, Assistant Director Don Winstel said he checked the architectural drawings and plans for the enclosure on Wednesday, and found that the walls and fence around the tigers are no lower than 16 feet.

But "now that you mention it, I think I'll take a tape measure out there tomorrow and make sure," he said.

No changes are planned at the Minnesota Zoo, where a 14-foot chain-link fence angles inward at the top with an additional four feet, director of biological programs Kevin Willis said.

"This is the first time that an escaped animal has killed someone at an accredited facility. So we must be doing something right," he said. "We have an incredible safety record. But this is a concern, and we'll study it when the results come out."

The Wildlife World Zoo in Litchfield Park, Ariz., located 15 miles west of Phoenix, has four adult Bengal tigers which can weigh more than 300 pounds. Zoo director Mickey Ollson said the tiger and lion exhibits are surrounded by a 17-foot-tall fence made of heavy duty material. The perimeter is also embedded in concrete to prevent them from digging under.

The San Francisco incident is a rarity, he said.

"Zoos are extremely safe places for individuals and families to visit ... this just doesn't happen," Ollson said. "People are safe when they come to the zoo."

[Associated Press; By ERIC GORSKI]

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