Amen, Deb. That was a horrible tragedy for the animals. I can't imagine being in a position where I had to shoot an animal.

Oh I saw this headline!

I saw it when it was way down on the list and maybe 2 people tweeted or shared it. My heart just sank! There were no words.

The beautiful creatures are murdered after being taken from a natural habitat, thrown into some metal cages, and you're a moron if you can't put it together, that something hanky was going on with the owner and care-takers. Maybe investors???

But creatures acting of their own instincts, being given a taste of freedom - air, I guess they acted in a sense, not agreeable with the people who sat by knowing all of this was going on.

I don't understand why tranquilizers weren't utilized altogether and rehabilitated to a more natural way of existance?

Agree with everything you say Deb.

It is a tragedy in which the animals in Ohio have been, for many years it seems, the victims, and as far as I understand it they are just one case amongst many. From 'zoo's such as this one to 'the cute pet wild animal'.

Hopefully this is a lesson learned.

For Elleise,

Tranquilizers could not be used because of the proximity to human populations. It takes 8 minutes for a tranquilizer to work and the animal continues to move in that time, many with the ability to roam great distances with greater aggression, as fight or flight has kicked in.

It is this exact issue I pointed out to the truck stop tiger owner when I interviewed him. He claims they have an escape plan on file with local police.

1. The escape plan cannot take into account random visitors to a truck stop, nor can it predict what visitors are doing.

2. They are directly off a highway. There is zero way to protect highway drivers from an unforeseen tiger loose on the road.

3. 8 minutes ... that's a lot of time to have an angry, scared, confused wild animal roaming, with the potential to lay waste to a great number of people.

4. If the Ohio incident can happen at a controlled area, with trained people, it can happen anywhere. The wild animals are not the wild card - the humans are.

The only viable option is to kill the animal to save the people. Dangerous wild animals belong in the wild not in our backyards. It's a lose/lose for the animal. Nature made them dangerous so that they would be able to survive. It is a crime for them to pay for humankind's ignorance and arrogance when all they are doing is what nature has commanded.