SC causes death of entire family of Meerkats

[Tigress]

I... erm... um...

Sorry. My brain short-circuited trying to find the words to express my rage. It never ceases to amaze me what people will put defenseless animals through just because they can. And this baby-squirter (she's not worthy of the title of "mother") is perfectly okay with sacrificing 5 animals just so her stupid brat will avoid a few needle pricks! And, at 9 years old, the brat should have known better! But, the gods forbid that the little trouser stain be held responsible for her own lack of common sense!

[moekosowl]

Ok, as has been said, we really shouldn't advocate violence, but let's run this one by Raps....can we at least hope retribution follows soon upon their wicked heels? (25 points, very obscure reference, PM me)

[Rapscallion]

I rather suspect that her neighbours will know who it is and word will spread There will be a reckoning more than we can wish here.

I remember a case where a store brought in the child protection services for a mother parenting her child, and the locals took a nasty vengeance - carts of frozen food abandoned in the aisles etc.

Rapscallion

[BunnyJas]

Oh. My. Gosh. And I was already having a bad day with a lack of faith in humanity. This only further enforces my desire for pushing a law that requires everyone to take a test before they have kids- if they don't pass, then they must be sterilized because they are too stupid to raise children. Way to teach your child that all living creatures should be respected you stupid . I know damn well that my parents would have made me get those shots and give me a red bottom to go along with it. After all, it wouldv'e been MY fault if I was dumb enough to put my fingers in a cage full of wild animals. I hope that zoo posts this woman's picture on the walls as a reminder to others not to touch the animals. Normally I don't condone the actions of PETA, but in this case I'd be willing to cheer them on if they decide to egg this womans' house. What further ticks me off is if they would've found rabies in one of those meerkats, then little pwecious would have had to get the shots anyway!

[Crow The Robot]

poor poor,critters I HATE friggin' peopel who have no sense of responsibility. The mother and daughtershould... should.. aw, screw it, there's no way I can adequately put into words the rage I am felling now, i talked to some zookeepers , at the NC zoo,and they said that the animals were kike family to them, poor keepers. If antone touched my animal(a kitty) and had it destroyed PETA would be the least of their concerns let me tell you, (no violence of course, i would've sued or something, since my cat,doesn't go outside, the yards of me and my neighbours(who like he because she kills mice) well let's just hope on their judgement day mother and daughter are given a jury of meerkats.

[kibbles]

I don't think it's fair to call the child a brat, the child was curious and did something they shouldn't because the parent wasn't watching. It's not right IMO to automatically assume that she is a brat, and to say that she deserves getting teased at school. Lots of normally well behaved children see something that looks to be soft and cuddly, automatically goes to pet it, it was the parent's responsibility.

JMO,

Kibbles

[wendula]

It gets worse>>>

http://www.twincities.com/mld/twinci...s/15201782.htm


Apparently the girl is the one who didn't want the shots and the parents supported her.

If it were my kid, she wouldn't have been given a choice!

[kibbles]

Why does that make it worse? The girl is 9 years old, what 9 year old would say that they wouldn't mind getting shots? It's totally the mother's responsibility, she should have to pay a fine of some sort to the zoo or exhibit for not properly watching her child.

JMO,

Kibbles

[Kiwi]

By nine years old I was smart and obediant enough not to go sticking my hands where they dont belong. Espeically when wild animals are concerned.

Yes it is her parents role to supervise her and stop her from doing things like that, but by 9 if she cant think hmmm wild animal in a cage = do not touch then id be incrediably worried.

I would also not be giving the child the choice, 5 rabies shots would be coming her way.

[MadMike]

I don't think it's fair to call the child a brat, the child was curious and did something they shouldn't because the parent wasn't watching.

If she was, say, 3 or 4, I'd have to agree with you. But I think by age 9, she was old enough to know better.

[kibbles]

She may be old enough to know better, but I think she is still at the age where a mistake was made and it's the parent's responsibility. I'm not saying that people shouldn't say that she shouldn't have known better, but calling her a brat and saying she deserves being teased at school is a bit much IMO.

[karma_gypsy]

That's why meerkats aren't pets. Both mother and daughter should have realized this. You can play with cats, dogs, hamsters, whatever, meerkats are wild animals and will do anything to protect themselves, each other and their young, as in this case.

I enjoy going to the zoo, as with so many other people. That upsets me that some girl had to ruin it for so many other people. I can understand maybe if the exhibits are undergoing changes and the animals aren't around, but because they had to be euthanized because of someone's lack of thinking? that's just wrong.
I have never littered or thrown anything into the exhibits, as I'm sure many other people do as well. I appreciate the animals in their habitats and love to take pictures of them.
Plus I love to feed the lorikeets - which is allowed - but lots of people often throw the little food cups on the ground when they're empty when there is a garbage cans two feet away. There is always a person working just to pick up the empty cups.

The lack of respect some (some, not all) people have animals is disgusting.

[One-Fang]

Kibbles is right - from what I read here, the child was just acting exactly as one would expect a child to. The fault lies partly with the zoo (why wasn't there a better barrier?) and mostly with the mother.

I have to agree with those who say the mother should be paying for the cost of the euthanising and replacement animals. I wouldn't have said so if there was no choice in this situation but to kill, but when the alternative is only that her pwecious baby doesn't have to have a couple of painful shots ... well.

I'll go one step further, which hasn't been suggested yet. I'm thinking of poor CRH (hope I've got the right CSer there) and the puppy killing story and I'm thinking - the mother and daughter should have been made to perform the euthanising. Now, I'm not saying it should be allowed to be potentially inhumane because they're inexperienced, but that they should what CRH did - administer the final shot under supervision.

She wants five meerkats killed so pwecious doesn't have to have a shot? Let her and pwecious experience the actual killing.

I suspect, like Raps, that she will be known in her home town, and her life will be hell right now.

[PuckishOne]

Kibbles is right - from what I read here, the child was just acting exactly as one would expect a child to. The fault lies partly with the zoo (why wasn't there a better barrier?) and mostly with the mother.

Yes, the child was being...well, a curious child, but I have to argue against holding the zoo at fault here.

Although I'm not familiar with the exact zoo in question, I have never been to a zoo in the US that didn't feature multiple, prominent, boldface-type-printed signs at every animal enclosure warning patrons not to climb or otherwise breach the barriers. Aside from a sign saying "please pet the meerkats," I can't for the life of me think of what would tell a literate adult that it was acceptable to allow a child of any age to reach into any sort of animal enclosure short of a petting farm. Zoos also post signs at all entrances and common areas stating that animals are, well, animals, and as such are unpredictable and not for petting or cuddling. (At our zoo, for example, there is a moat, fencing, walls and various large boulders separating viewers from the large-animal exhibits, and yet there are still signs posted saying "don't jump the moat/the fence/the wall.")

Short of bouncers, or an electric fence aimed at the paying customers, I can't see what else a zoo could be expected to do.

[kibbles]

I'll go one step further, which hasn't been suggested yet. I'm thinking of poor CRH (hope I've got the right CSer there) and the puppy killing story and I'm thinking - the mother and daughter should have been made to perform the euthanising. Now, I'm not saying it should be allowed to be potentially inhumane because they're inexperienced, but that they should what CRH did - administer the final shot under supervision.

ITA 100%, maybe then the shots wouldn't have seemed so bad after all. I never thought of that option before, good one One-Fang!

Kibbles