San Francisco Zoo Siberian Tiger Attack

"She was everything that a tiger is supposed to be," said big-cat expert Ronald Tilson. "She was essentially shot and killed for being a tiger."

Tilson was speaking about Tatiana, the 4-year-old Siberian who fatally attacked one zoo visitor and injured two others at the San Francisco Zoo late Christmas afternoon before police officers gunned her down.

Tatiana was born in the Denver Zoo on June 27, 2003, and donated to San Francisco in December 2005 to mate with a male named Tony.

Tilson, who is responsible for the 147 Siberians, or Amurs, that live in more than 60 AZA-accredited zoos in North America, said, "I'm the one who made the recommendation for her to be born in Denver. I'm the one who made a recommendation to send her to San Francisco. I feel personally involved with all of this. To me, it's very disconcerting and very upsetting."

Tilson said he can't recall a tiger ever getting out of its enclosure and killing a zoo visitor. He added that Tatiana's behavior, once she escaped, was very much in keeping with her species.

"She was an alpha predator in her environment," he said. "She was killing mammals and eating meat."

He said any loose zoo animal would want to return to its habitat and would become upset, disoriented, frightened - and potentially dangerous.

"Once the animal is out of its primary enclosure, it's pretty much shoot to kill," Tilson said. "You don't have a discussion - you kill it. A tranquilizer gun would take too long and you might miss."

(from the SF Chronicle 12/27/07)

For a different perspective on big cats and zoos, here's the Newsweek article and the Big Cat Rescue Sanctuary blog.


"Tatiana, the Siberian tiger that killed a teenager on Christmas Day, had lived at the San Francisco Zoo since December 2005, when she was transferred from the Denver Zoo. She was just a cub in August 2003, left, as she underwent a medical checkup by veterinary staffers at the Denver facility. (Karl Gehring / Denver Post)" (from the LA Times)

"Leigh Lawson, 25, stands in front of the San Francisco Zoo on Wednesday to protest the killing of the Siberian tiger that escaped its habitat and killed a zoo visitor on Christmas Day. Lawson, a student at Humboldt State, says she wishes officers had tranquilized the animal instead. (Noah Berger / Associated Press)(from the LA Times)

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