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Zoo: No time to save child mauled by African painted dogs
It happened in seconds. A 2-year-old boy slipped over a railing, bounced into a safety net, bounced again, and tumbled into an exhibit of African painted dogs, which mauled him to death.
The heartbreaking scenario came to light Monday as the Pittsburgh Zoo released details of the child's death Sunday.
If someone had jumped in to save him, would it have helped? "In my professional opinion, no," zoo President Barbara Baker, a veterinarian, said at a news conference today. "There were 11 dogs in the exhibit."
Although there were zoo officials within feet of the exhibit, and others rushed to the scene, it was too late – it was clear the child was dead, Baker said. "There was no reason to send our staff into harm's way" at that point, she said.
An emergency weapons team and the police arrived. The dogs were moved to another area and are now quarantined. But one dog refused to leave. The police needed to access the scene so, with the zoo's approval, two officers opened fire, killing the remaining dog.
The medical examiner found that the little boy did not die from the fall, Baker said.
Railings throughout the zoo are designed to make it difficult to place children on them, Baker said. They're at a 45-degree angle so that if a child is placed on one and falls, he or she would hopefully fall backward, away from the animal enclosure, she said.
Pittsburgh police say the child was with his 34-year-old mother when he fell from the top of a platform railing and "was immediately attacked by eleven dogs inside the pen."
"Homicide investigators have interviewed several witnesses and zoo personnel, and the investigation is ongoing," police said in a written statement.
Asked whether the zoo takes responsibility for not creating a fail-proof system, Baker responded, "We do everything we possibly can," and "we evaluate it every single day." There is "no such thing as a fail-proof exhibit," she said.
The Association of Zoos and Aquariums will require a report from the zoo, and if it deems necessary, will send an investigative team, Baker said.
All the dogs had physicals in September, which include rabies shots, she said.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture inspected the zoo in September and found no deficiencies, she said. The agency, by law, will return for a follow-up inspection.
Baker did not say whether or how procedures may change as a result of the accident. The zoo has never faced this kind of tragedy, she said.
The zoo will reopen tomorrow, but the African painted dogs exhibit is closed until further notice.
The child has not been identified, and his family has made no public statement.
See our story from yesterday here.
On Twitter
You have to be a Republican.
And I dont believe in fairy tales so i dont know jesus or "god" i mean if he was real the child would had been ok right? Maybe you need to get your head checked out if your seeing someone that claims to be jesus or having conversations with a god! We call those kind of people crazy!!! Take a pill please theres plenty of free help available need me google a free clinic for you?
Jon and your followers...go play in traffic!
obvious trolling, folks.
A republican? I would rather be mauled to death by hamsters! Nothing political about my statement! Calm down smoke a joint you hippie!
Is there not one decent person on this entire comment board!? The mother MAY have been careless but she didn't deserve to have her child killed. A bunch of heartless nebishes with an internet signal.
I dont play in traffic and i always look.both ways before i cross the street!
As a father of a 4y and 22 months old girl, this hurts really bad.
Always assume your kid will be able to free herself at the worst moment.
Never underestimate how much a kid can get herself more in troubles than she already is.
With boys assume that even more
This would not have happened if someone had a gun. Pennsylvania makes it difficult to get a CCW permit. If someone had a gun those dogs would have been dead and the child would be alive.
That is absolutely correct. If more decent, intelligent people were permitted to carry guns, there would be less tragedies like this or the incident at the movie theatre in Colorado. Five or six heroes would have had their pistols drawn and firing before that poor toddler hit the ground. Too bad Pennsylvania does not try to limit who is allowed to reproduce. And I truly could not care less if this species of dog was sent that much closer to extinction. All manner of creatures have gone extinct over the course of earth's history. Natural selection is a beautiful thing. Don't fight it.
If some of you callous jerks had been there like I was when it happened you probably wouldn't be making such a joke of it. I thank God I had already left that exhibit and witnessed none of it, but knowing a child died where I had just been is harrowing and still making me physically sick.
Mom will sue for millions and win and the zoo will be forced to go out of business.
Sue? For what? Money? What is that going to bring? Not your child back!!! Every parent(s) knows their child is someone that money can't buy. The child was only two years old, he did not even get to see life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!
another idiot
m scott is correct. investigate these post birth women
The Zoo should sue the mother instead, and the zoo should win.
She will sue for "Why didn't you build your fence 2 feet higher to protect from idiots like me who sacrificed their child's life for no good reason?" Sad thing is, she'll probably win...
They should shoot the dogs and put the zoo officials in jail for negligence.
Mother sure has blame, but zoo knew that stupid people do stupid things like put their child on the railing. So, why, oh why, could zoo simply not have put a design of posts and railings and attached chain link fencing. It is very cheap and could have been put up very easily and this child would be alive today. YES, YES, YES, mother has balme too, but was it too much to ask to just have some fencing – that's all. Sure, go ahead and have the mother stoned if you must, but her actions were not the only balme here. We are talking about saving a child's life, regardless of the stupidty of the mother.
Bob, that would be wrong. The dogs did nothing wrong. They did what came naturally to them. They are an endangered species, as well. I also disagree that the zoo was negligent.
If that was my child that fell in there, Bear, Tiger, Lion, or Dog, I would jump in and and frighten the animals away or cover my child in safety. People just don't know there capabilities until they try it and their adrenaline starts to pump. Remember, we are the supreme being on earth, life or death, I would do what ever it takes to keep my child from such tragedy like this. My condolence goes to the child. 😦
Who knows, the mother might be a motive behind this. First thing to check, was there a life insurance taken out on the child? The most for a child is 30k.
Stop and look at how disgusting your post is. Who are you to judge? A tragedy has occurred and a lot of compassion and prayers are needed for this family.
if you new thi family like i do you would not make these comments
You are one twisted puppy.....and based on your comment, NO, humans are not the supreme being on earth.....SICK, SICK, SICK......get a life, troll.
I'm just saying... If I was to see a child fall into danger like that. I would expect everyone and their momma to jump in and frighten the animals away. Use your brain, you idiot!! I don't care if it was a lion, what is that cat going to do to me if I had everyone in there with me?
Wild dogs can kill a tiger. You could not jump in and frighten them. Just shows you don't know what you are talking about.
The fact is, you really don't know how you would behave in this or any other dangerous situation. I see you have "student" in your screen name, which signifies to me that you are young, so I don't want to be hard on you. But we all want to believe we would do heroic and wonderful things in such situations. As we get older, however, and we experience so much of life, we realize that none of us can say with certainty what we would or would not do until we are actually in any given situation. We can only hope it never happens to us. And we shouldn't judge.
I agree heck yea I would've jumped in and protected my child and have someone more time to save my child!
These were dogs, yes, I said dogs.... A kick would do the job to kick these mutts away. SAVE YOUR CHILD!!! IF SOMETHING LIKE THIS EVER HAPPENS, I HOPE EVERYONE JUMPS IN AND DO THE RIGHT THING!! DAMN HUMANS!!
If someone was burning in a vehicle, would you run to rescue them or would you just watch them burn to death?
Is it not in our instinct to jump into action? Are we not HUMANS? If we are no the superior race on earth, then who? Who has evolved with a brain like ours? PEOPLE, JUST DON'T STAND THERE TO POINT, WATCH, SCREAM, AND SAY OMG. I can't believe the people around there don't feel any guilt at all. Just standing there looking as the child get mulled!!!!
If you or anyone had jumped into the pen, you'd be as dead as the child. You don't get to "shoo" wild animals away. No human, or multiple humans, is a match for pack animal hunting machines.
It is all the dumb moms fault! who leans their kid into a wild aimals pen!!
thank you kelly!!! i totally agree with you.
every parent know kids climb and get into things, sadly it was the moms responsibility. I'm amazed animals would kill a small child. I think she is selfish to sue and the animals should not be punished .
mother will sue for millions when it was her own fault the child fell.
I agree
it is very possible the mom could have insured the baby and "accidentally" let the baby to fall and be eaten up