Search Exotic Incidents Database

A worker at the Jacksonville Zoo was hospitalized after being rammed by a 2-year-old, 600-pound antelope called Abe. The worker sustained a serious gash to her leg that required surgery.

A serval got it’s leg caught between the bottom of a sliding chain link door and was found with severe trauma to the leg. The front teeth were all broken. Park officials decided to euthanize rather than amputate due to the animal’s various issues.

Sheriff’s detectives entered pet store in 110-degree heat where 160 exotic reptiles, amphibians, and invertebrates were without food, water, and air conditioning for three weeks. Scores of animals died. The 23-year-old pet shop owner told investigators he ran into financial difficulty and power to the store was cut off on 08/03/07. He was later charged with 126 counts of animal cruelty. See 9/20/07.

Animal Control officials removed nearly 40 animals, many neglected, including exotic lizards and tortoises, birds (including a duck and cockatoo), chinchillas, and 5 Pomeranian dogs and a cat. Several chinchillas did not survive the move and 2 dogs had to be destroyed. The animals remained in the care of the city’s animal shelter and the possessor’s home was condemned.

A 35 year old trainer at SeaWorld suffered minor injuries when a killer whale knocked her off of the wall she was sitting on causing her to hit her head.

A young zebra jumped out of the back of a moving trailer and crossed US 41, running into the Heron’s Glen Community before being recaptured by a local Animal Control officer. The zebra suffered injuries. Workers employed by the Shell Factory Zoo declined to disclose where the zebra was being transported.

A young male tiger was found shot to death along Interstate 35 near Dallas. Officials received an anonymous tip and found the tiger lying on the road. The tiger wore a collar and leash and had been shot five times. The tiger was taken to the Dallas Zoo where a necropsy showed that he had been in good health at the time of his death. State and federal officials were investigating.

Tatiana, a Siberian tiger, escaped from her enclosure at the San Francisco Zoo. She killed one visitor and mauled two others before being shot and killed by police officers. The zoo was closed temporarily out of respect for the victims and an investigation was undertaken to determine how Tatiana escaped. Her enclosure had been fortified following an attack on a zookeeper in 2006, and had only been re-opened since September. In that 2006 incident, Tatiana seriously injured a zookeeper during a regular afternoon publicly viewed feeding. The zoo was later ruled responsible for that incident by the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA), who blamed the incident on poor training and the way the tiger enclosure was designed. (see previous incident of 12/22/06)

Actress Christina Ricci told Parade Magazine that she had to face her primate fear recently as she co-starred with a monkey, Willie, in the upcoming movie, Speed Racer. The monkey freaked out and grabbed her left breast. Her co-actors eventually helped remove the monkey.

A resident of Holland Township was shocked to find the body of an armadillo lying on the road. It was suspected that the armadillo was someone’s “pet” as armadillos are not native to Michigan.