Animals Gone Wild in Ohio: Dead Man's Zoo Turns Into a Killing Field
October 19th, 2011
Animals Gone Wild in Ohio: Dead Man's Zoo Turns Into a Killing Field
Published on October 19th, 2011 @ 10:53:56 pm , using 610 words
Wall Street Journal / Joe Barrett
A rural area near Zanesville, Ohio, was turned into a killing zone Tuesday evening and Wednesday as authorities destroyed 48 exotic animals—including 12 lions, eight bears and 18 endangered Bengal tigers, after their owner released them and apparently took his own life.
As of Wednesday afternoon, authorities were still looking for a macaque monkey and a gray wolf, said Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz.
Local schools were closed and travelers on a nearby highway were warned by signs saying "Caution Exotic Animals," as authorities hunted for the animals, shooting dozens as they roamed the owner's 73-acre property and surrounding woods.
When deputies arrived at the farm about 55 miles east of Columbus Tuesday evening, "public safety was my No. 1 concern," Mr. Lutz said in a televised news conference. He ordered his deputies to shoot any animals that threatened to escape. "We could not have animals running loose in this county," he said.
Authorities identified the owner of the animals as Terry Thompson, 62 years old, who had faced numerous complaints about the animals and had been convicted at least once of abuse, Mr. Lutz said. Mr. Thompson had been released from prison on Sept. 30, after serving a year and a day on federal charges of possessing illegal firearms.
Ohio is among 10 states with the weakest restrictions on exotic pets, said Wayne Pacelle, president of the Humane Society of the U.S. "It's become ground zero for the exotic animals trade" as dealers have moved from other states to set up shop in Ohio to avoid tougher regulation elsewhere, he said.
Former Democratic Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland signed an emergency order before leaving office that prohibited the acquisition of exotic pets and would have forced owners who had been convicted of animal abuse to get rid of them.
But current GOP Gov. John Kasich declined to extend the order, arguing it lacked teeth, said spokesman Rob Nichols.
Mr. Nichols said the governor formed a task force to draw up a new law that contained enforcement provisions. "It's easy to sign an executive order that doesn't do anything," he said.
The head of the task force said Wednesday that he expects the group to issue a framework for the new law in 30 days, Mr. Nichols said.
Mr. Lutz said his office started getting phone calls at about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday that wild animals were loose just west of Zanesville on a road that runs under Interstate 70, according to the Associated Press.
Mr. Lutz said that deputies responding to the calls found animals roaming around the property as well as outside. "Deputies had to shoot animals with their side arms at close range," he said. Despite close calls, there were no injuries to the officers.
Still, it was grim work, Mr. Lutz said, with many of the officers saying it would be difficult to explain to their children why they had to kill the animals.
Efforts to tranquilize some animals failed. In one incident Wednesday morning, a veterinarian tried to tranquilize a 300-pound tiger, Mr. Lutz said. "This thing just went crazy. It started to run into the wooded area and our officers took it down."
"What was done had to be done," said Jack Hanna, a television wildlife host and director emeritus of the Columbus Zoo, who appeared beside the sheriff. "It's a tragedy beyond belief."
Six animals inside Mr. Thompson's home were transferred to a zoo, Mr. Lutz said. All the destroyed animals were buried on the property.
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