nick
October 8th, 2009, 12:34 PM
A woman was mauled to death by her 350-pound pet bear as she cleaned the animal's cage, officials said on Monday.
Kelly Ann Walz, 37, was pronounced dead at the scene in rural north-eastern Pennsylvania, according to Tim Conway, an information and education supervisor with the Pennsylvania Game Commission.
Walz's husband was an exotic pet dealer who was operating with an expired license, an official said.
Walz went into the bear's 15-by-15-foot steel and concrete cage on Sunday evening, throwing a shovelful of dog food on one side to distract the bear while she cleaned the other end of the enclosure, Mr Conway said.
But as her children and the neighbour's children watched, the animal turned and attacked Walz. The youngsters summoned help, and the neighbour shot and killed the bear while it was mauling Walz, Mr 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."
Full story here (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/6262549/Woman-killed-by-pet-bear-in-front-of-children-while-cleaning-cage.html)
Kelly Ann Walz, 37, was pronounced dead at the scene in rural north-eastern Pennsylvania, according to Tim Conway, an information and education supervisor with the Pennsylvania Game Commission.
Walz's husband was an exotic pet dealer who was operating with an expired license, an official said.
Walz went into the bear's 15-by-15-foot steel and concrete cage on Sunday evening, throwing a shovelful of dog food on one side to distract the bear while she cleaned the other end of the enclosure, Mr Conway said.
But as her children and the neighbour's children watched, the animal turned and attacked Walz. The youngsters summoned help, and the neighbour shot and killed the bear while it was mauling Walz, Mr 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."
Full story here (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/6262549/Woman-killed-by-pet-bear-in-front-of-children-while-cleaning-cage.html)