Sad news today, a young elephant keeper was killed by an elephant at the Knoxville Zoo the other day.
Was she trampled? Was the elephant acting up? No. According to the article the elephant pushed her in the stall. Pushed her…and she died of internal injuries.
Tom loved his work at the zoo. Okay, he was a cross between a cowboy and Tarzan. I have the picture of him – tranquilized tiger at this feet; I know he went down into the moat more times that I wanted to know to get the young polar bear cub back up into the exhibit area. If you knew Tom, you know the stories. Kudo hoof swipes his face; lion’s claw cuts his arm; monkey bite. It was part of zoo life.
Close proximity
Even with the safety measures some of the zoos have put into place, if you are an animal keeper, you are in close proximity with the animals. There are times it just can’t be helped; there are other times that it is necessary or considered low risk.
Many years ago, the AAZK had their convention in Detroit. Tom and I were asked to video tape it. At one point, we went to the Detroit Zoo to see some of the changes/improvements they were making. As we toured the elephant exhibit, one of the keepers told me to come up to the door to get a better shot of the elephants. Oh my! I had never been that close to an elephant before. It looked mammoth from my perspective. I stood behind the electric wire.. Later that night when I commented on the adventure, she laughed and said, “Linda, I forgot you weren’t a keeper. Had I remembered, I would have taken you out into the yard to really get a feel for how big they are.”
Knowing what I know about horses, their blind spots, and how the move, I cannot help but think the same holds true for an elephant. They may see you; they may not. I’ve been in the wrong place with horses and got knock over. There’s a big difference – weight and power – between a horse and an elephant.
My heart goes out to the family of this young woman, who, from what the article says, enjoyed working with the animals.
