An endangered gorilla has been shot dead after a 4-yo fell into its zoo enclosure

[AdrenalineFudge]

Why the fuck has this happened... again - to another endangered species?

A little boy fell into an enclosure and the zoo staff decided the best course of action was to shoot the gorilla dead.

I'm not even sure who I'm most angry at. This should not have happened in the first place.

Nataleejah Mon 30-May-16 09:27:35
Yeah, awful. Thats why since then i hold them tight in places like that.

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But say something awful had happened to your little one that first time he ran off Nataleejah. Would it be okay for half the population to be describing you as a bad parent? Even if it was just a one off, first time event?

Its a great shame all round

I do think there are a lot of reasonableness on this thread from people understanding that it was a bit of a perfect storm...which is good

And a whole load of people talking out of their arse.

I'm not convinced the zoo is too blame either, the enclosure has been in place for years and this hasn't happened before. I think it's just a tragic accident.

Just because it hasn't happened before doesn't mean it was safe, it means the zoo was fucking lucky.

I think the Zoo had no choice but to shoot the Gorilla.
I do not think the mother is to blame, kids are quick.
I am astonished that a child managed to get into the enclosure.

When with mine at the Zoo, I do worry about them getting too close to the enclosures, but have always thought that the Zoo's make it impossible for them to get in.

For those that disagree with the Gorilla being shot. What do you think of the case a few years ago when a couple of boys got into the Polar Bear enclosure and one was killed. Should they still have shot the bears?

www.nytimes.com/1987/05/20/nyregion/polar-bears-kill-a-child-at-prospect-park-zoo.html

On the school run a couple of weeks ago, DS1 was was right in front of me,DS2 and DS3 in the pram. We were approaching a junction and all of a sudden DS2 beside me needed my attention so my face was facing him.
Then I heard a loud "beeeep!!". DS1 had only just gone started crossing the road without me! He could have got run over, and my attention wasn't fully on him. I'm not an idiot mother and I'm not a careless mother at all. I thought I had taught him to WAIT at the road for me. Probably just like that woman told her little boy NOT to climb in to the gorilla pit and then she became momentarily distracted.

Imagine if my DS has been run over and killed and the vitriol and judgement I would have got on in the press, on social media, mumsnet, etc... There are now fucking memes on FB about the mum now.

It's sad and regrettable but ultimately the zoo keepers took the right action. All this vilification of the mother is strange. Kids can do dumb stuff when you're not watching. It is impossible to watch them at every second. My DS fractured his wrist doing a stupid jump from the top of the sofa when I turned my back to answer the phone. Thank God no one at the hospital accused me of being a negligent parent.

Tranquilliser darts aren't necessarily immediate in their effect and it could have startled the gorilla and made him act unpredictably for several seconds before it started working. Plus he could have fallen on the child. They had to make a quick decision within a short window of time. They called it, and I can't see how they can be blamed.

Lots of frothing on my facebook today someone is saying the mother caused the murder of the gorrila

Oh and the gorrilla had no evil intent in his eyes hewasnt going to harm the boy had to respond to that 1

But say something awful had happened to your little one that first time he ran off Nataleejah. Would it be okay for half the population to be describing you as a bad parent? Even if it was just a one off, first time event?
If anything BAD would have happened, i think shitstorm on facebook would be the least of my worries.

And for those parents what child's unhurt, and a week or two everybody will forget.

If something bad had happened would you have deserved all the vitriol and hatred then Nataleejah?

I said -- it would be the least of my worries. Internet vitriol is very short-lived anyway

Someone has even said the parents must have been relatives of the McCanns

Some strange people out there. Parents should be charged with neglect and manslaughter as well as having am their other children taken off them. That's according to some Facebook users anyway.

I noticed that NN. How the hell can this be brought back to the McCanns?! Madness.

What? that doesnt even make sense folk are loony needacleverNN

I would hold the hand of a child that is a 'runner' on a school trip . I would hold the hand of a child that states he wants to get in with the gorilla. Common sense really.

One of the people who thinks that is a friend. I honestly can't even begin to argue with him

Seriously considering our friendship now. Bad enough he is one of those Britain first people and constantly reads the daily mail.

It's just a tragic accident. The gorilla looks confused and irritated.
I'm happy the boy is ok but feel bad for all concerned.

You can't always predict which child will do a runner/something unpredictable.
If you held the hand of every 4/5 year old that said they wanted to ride the elephant/pet the lions/get in with the gorillas you'd have to hold on to all of them. Which you can't do on a school trip.

I think its tragic but this is America they will also shoot first think later, there was the case of a man who kept exotic animals and then decided to set them all free and top himself. All of the animals some of them endangered were shot dead rather than tranquillised. Even the police on duty that day described it as a massacre.

It should never have happened, the zoo should be prosecuted for neglect and breaches of health and safety, the mother should have been watching her child and there should have been an alternative to getting the boy out without shooting the gorilla dead imo.

I would hold the hand of a child that states he wants to get in with the gorilla.

I would assume the zoo had done its job and that a four year old wouldn't be able to get into the gorilla pit in the first place!

This could not have happened with ds (at the moment) because he would have to be on reins anywhere like that. for almost all children there comes a point where you have to give them more freedom but they will not be 100% reliable about being sensible.

My dds have saidoh look at at a zoo i want to hug it not for a minute did i think they would try and get in and try and hug it no parent imo would

I bet there's a correlation between those with the most vitriolic comments for the mother (not father!?) and the lack of parental supervision.... I.e. Those who think the child should be taken off parents who should be prosecuted go neglect, are also those who think nothing of letting out their young kids to play by ponds etc. People with so moronic as to have so little sense of proportion and perspective on this they are probably blissfully unaware of their own lack of judgement!

Somebody upthread said the parents might be charged so they are being held responsible