Why? Why would you keep a black bear as a pet?

[imabrat]

What a senseless, tragic death. A women died today after being mauled by her pet black bear in a town near mine. Here's the article...

The family of the woman who was mauled by a pet bear on Sunday had other exotic animals. A caged lion could be seen on the property Monday morning.

Police said ------, 37, of -----, was fatally mauled by her pet black bear Sunday when she went in to clean its cage. Others saw the attack and called for help, at which point a neighbor shot the bear.

----'s husband, ------, had a permit, to keep and sell exotic animals, that expired in June 2008, according to Associated Press reports. -----, who has been licensed since 1994, told authorities in 2007 that he kept a lion, cougar, jaguar, tiger, black bear, leopard and two servals on the property.

-------s license to keep and sell exotic animals expired in June of 2008, Conway said. Information and education supervisor ---- Conway at the Pennsylvania Game Commission's northeastern regional office in Dallas, called the lapse a technicality.

------- went into the bear's 15-by-15-foot steel and concrete cage about 5 p.m. Sunday, throwing a shovelful of dog food to one side to distract the bear while she cleaned the other side, Conway told the Associated Press. At some point the bear turned on her and attacked.

Her children and the neighbor's children saw the attack and summoned help, and the neighbor shot and killed the bear while it was atop -----, Conway said.

"Why this woman chose to go in the same area that the bear was in is beyond me. It's a fatal mistake," he said. "These things are not tame animals, they're wild animals."


Since police did not specifically say if the bear had been in a separate section of the cage and happened to break into the section where ----- was, the assumption is that she had not first taken the precaution to make sure the bear could not get at her before entering the cage.

For someone who owns an exotic wild animal as a pet and is entering to clean its cage, the biggest safety tip is for the owner to make sure the animal is in a separate section of the cage from which it cannot get at the owner, according to Conway.

Conway said the Game Commission grants permits allowing people to own wild animals as pets.


The family has no comment at this time.

We'll have more on this story and the permit requirements in Tuesday's print edition.

Why?! All I can do is shake my head.

 

[I Am What I Am]

WHY are people even allowed to keep wild animals as pets? THEY ARE NOT PETS. They are wild, unpredictable animals.

 

[mikeyandscoobyx2]

That's really strange.

Why would you want a pet bear?

 

[MickeyisBeast]

What force on earth would make you WANT a wild animal as a pet? They are dangerous, even if they are trained. That's just sad. I feel sorry for her, that that's the way she had to go...

 

[life of the party]

well she probably got ALL of those wild animals when they were really young, so they were super cute.

like, bear cubs are ADORABLE but .. they all grow up.

 

[OneTreeHill]

 

[MuskratSusie]