How did child get in gorilla enclosure

Why Was It So Easy For A Child To Get Into A Gorilla Pit?

• Daily Dodo
• Captivity

By Sarah V Schweig

Published on 6/2/2016 at 11:28 AM

Without his parents noticing, a 4-year-old boy crawled under a railing, over wires and through a moat to reach Harambe, a 17-year-old Western lowland gorilla at the Cincinnati Zoo, who was shot dead shortly after.

According to reports, just before he fell almost 20 feet into the enclosure, the boy told his mother he wanted to enter it.

"The little boy himself had already been talking about wanting to go in, get in the water, and his mother is like, 'No you're not, no you're not,'" a witness told CNN. "Her attention was drawn away for seconds, maybe a minute, and then he was up and in before you knew it."

Because they believed the boy was in danger, zoo officials killed Harambe. While many disagree about whether or not Harambe was a threat to the child, the zoo officials stand by their decision. But in the aftermath, Harambe's death has sparked debate about who is to blame - the parents? The child? The zoo? Harambe himself?

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Many of these questions have no certain answer. But one might ask a more basic question: How and why it is possible for such a small child to even get into an enclosure with a 450-pound animal?

The Dodo ask an expert what one might think would be a simpler version of the question: Why do people sometimes end up in enclosures with zoo animals? The answer delves into the sad and fascinating history of animals in captivity.

"If we look back 40 or 50 years, you'd go to zoos and see animals behind bars. You'd see them in a way that they're imprisoned, truly imprisoned, which means they're protected and people are protected," Ron L. Kagan, executive director and chief executive officer of The Detroit Zoo, a leading institution for animal welfare, told The Dodo.

As zoos learned more about what animals actually need, Kagan said, things began to change. Zoos opted for more natural, immersive exhibits that would help the animal live more like they would in the wild. But that involved compromises.

Kagan fears that the backlash from the Harambe incident could cause zoos to move backward in their treatment of animals in their hard-won naturalistic enclosures. Kagan pointed out that the "naturalistic and immersive" exhibit at the Cincinnati Zoo has been open for about 30 years.

"If you take into account over a million visitors per year, that incident is horrible but still a rare one," he said.

Even the best designs for animal enclosures often can't guarantee everyone's safety when there's a will to get inside. "When there's an intention to go into an enclosure, it's almost impossible to prevent that," Kagan said. He cited a number of examples of suicide attempts, most recently in Chile, where a man threw himself into a lion's enclosure, forcing zookeepers to kill two lions.

The Detroit Zoo was the first major zoo in the U.S. to decide on ethical grounds to no longer keep elephants at all. The Dodo asked Kagan whether he could see this happening for other animals, like great apes, in the future.

"All of us are on this journey to continuously improve things, whether that's conservation or welfare, and thinking of what we could do better for the animals and the public," Kagan said. "What was a big discussion for elephants is now a discussion for cetaceans . .. Great apes obviously have complicated needs and it's up to us to provide for those needs, to make sure the animals can behave in a natural way and have a lot of control and choice in their daily lives."

The great apes at The Detroit Zoo live in a 4-acre habitat that is home to two Western lowland gorillas, as well as chimpanzees and drill monkeys. The primates spend their days foraging, grooming and playing, just as they would in their native African environment, according to the zoo's website. Sometimes visitors can't even see the animals because the lush, large area gives them room for privacy when they need it.

"The challenge is for them to thrive," Kagan said. "So, if they're not thriving here, they should go live somewhere else."

He added that one thing is for sure when it comes to issues of animal captivity and conservation: "It's a constantly changing thing. There will be changes."

In the case of Harambe's death, Kagan said, in his view, a human - whether it was the child or the adult - "just made a mistake. "

Update: In November, a federal inspection of the zoo found that the barrier (which has since been replaced) was not in compliance with standards for keeping primates in captivity when the boy managed to get in Harambe's habitat. The investigation is ongoing.

The three-year-old boy who fell into zoo's Harambe gorilla enclosure

This is the three-year-old boy who fell into a gorilla enclosure, prompting zookeepers to kill the animal who grabbed him.

Isiah Dickerson was with his mother Michelle Gregg at Cincinnati Zoo, Ohio, when he somehow made his way through a barrier, into a moat - and was lifted up by Harambe.

Within minutes the 17-year-old 450lb silverback was killed by zookeepers who feared for Isiah's safety.

But the decision has sparked a backlash, with calls for the boy's parents to be prosecuted.

Isiah is recovering from minor injuries and his mother has not been seen at the Cincinnati home where she lives.

His father, Deonne Dickerson, 36, has also not been seen since the killing of the gorilla. He was not with his partner and their four children at the time.

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Family: Isiah Dickerson is seen with his mother Michelle Gregg, 32, and his father Deonne Dickerson, 36. The couple have four children. 

Doting: Isiah Dickerson with his father Deonne. The family released a statement saying that he was not badly injured and thanking God for his help

Close: Deonne Dickerson, his partner Michelle Gregg and their children, including Isiah 

Mom and dad: Deonne Dickerson and Michelle Gregg are the parents of the three-year-old boy who fell into the gorilla enclosure of Harambe on Saturday at Cincinnati Zoo 

Soon after the incident, Michelle Gregg,32, posted a message on Facebook saying: 'I want to thank everyone for their thoughts and prayers today. What started off as a wonderful day turned into a scary one.

'For those of you that have seen the news or been on social media that was my son that fell in the gorilla exhibit at the zoo. God protected my child until the authorities were able to get to him.

'My son is safe and was able to walk away with a concussion and a few scrapes... no broken bones or internal injuries.

'As a society we are quick to judge how a parent could take their eyes off of their child and if anyone knows me I keep a tight watch on my kids. Accidents happen but I am thankful that the right people were in the right place today.'

Together: Deonne Dickerson has a past history of violent crime. He now lives in Cincinnati with partner Michelle Gregg and together they have four children

The family released a statement on Sunday saying they had taken their boy home from the hospital.

It read: 'We are so thankful to the Lord that our child is safe. He is home and doing just fine. We extend our heartfelt thanks for the quick action by the Cincinnati Zoo staff.

'We know that this was a very difficult decision for them, and that they are grieving the loss of their gorilla. We hope that you will respect our privacy at this time.'

The family have been subject to death threats. They are not facing a police investigation.

The zoo, however, is and is also now the subject of a complaint to the United States Department of Agriculture, which regulates safety for animals and visitors. 

The boy's father has a significant criminal history, with offenses including burglary, firearms offences, drug trafficking, criminal trespass, disorderly conduct and kidnap.

In 2006 he was sentenced to one year behind bars for a drug trafficking conviction. 

But in numerous pictures posted on Dickerson's Facebook site in recent years he appears to have turned his life around to become the proud father of four.

Indeed, the majority of his postings to the social media site are updates of his children and his working life.

In others pictures he has uploaded his friends post congratulate him and Michelle on the birth of their fourth child last January.

Cleveland-based Dickerson is from Atlanta, Georgia studied at Cuyahoga Community College, Ohio and now works as a sorter at a Cincinnati industrial equipment supplier.

Gregg is currently the administrator at a Cincinnati pre-school.

She has been the subject of sharp criticism following the incident that saw zoo staff shoot dead Harambe who, according to new video footage, may have been protecting rather than threatening the child after he crawled through a barrier and fell into the gorilla's enclosure.

Many social media commenters have criticized the boy's parents and said they should be held accountable. A Cincinnati police spokesman said no charges were being considered. A spokeswoman for the family said Monday they had no plans to comment.

'I do think there's a degree of responsibility they have to be held to,' said Kate Villanueva, a mother of two children from Erlanger, Kentucky, who started the 'Justice for Harambe' page and attended Monday's vigil. 'You have to be watching your children at all times. '

More outraged animal lovers took to social media declaring the western lowland gorilla's life was unnecessarily taken, and more than 4,000 have already joined the 'Justice for Harambe'.

A special zoo response team shot and killed a 17-year-old gorilla named Harambe to protect a three-year-old who fell in the enclosure. But new video footage shows the two briefly holding hands (pictured) 

The clip shows Harambe standing guard in the corner of the moat (left, with the boy behind Harambe), and witnesses said the gorilla looked like he was trying to protect the boy from panicked bystanders (right)

The boy's mother wrote a Facebook post saying her son suffered a concussion and a few scrapes. She defended her role as a parent and called the incident an accident

Ian Redmond, the chairman of the Gorilla Organization, told CNN : 'When gorilla or other apes have things they shouldn't have, keepers will negotiate with them, bring food, their favorite treats, pineapple or some kind of fruit that they don't know and negotiate with them. '

Primatologist Julia Gallucci said: 'The gorilla enclosure should have been surrounded by a secondary barrier between the humans and the animals to prevent exactly this type of incident.'

Others are placing the blame squarely on the boy's parents.

More than 115,000 people have signed a Change.org petition calling for the mother and father to be 'held accountable for their actions of not supervising their child'.

One Twitter user wrote: 'So a beautiful, innocent gorilla has to die because neglectful parents can't control their kids? Mankind sucks :( #Harambe #CincinnatiZoo'

Another user Chris Dasauchoit tweeted: 'Beautiful animals sadly paying for utter human stupidity and negligence with their lives. #Harame #CincinnatiZoo.'

The zoo shot the beloved animal after he dragged the boy through the water and up out of the moat, but many say he was simply trying to protect the child 

Deidre Lykins was also at the zoo when she saw the boy drop into the enclosure.

She described how Ms Gregg was calling out for her son and had just been next to him when he disappeared.

Then she had to stop her husband from going in to try and rescue him. But she insists Ms Gregg is not at fault, and wrote on Facebook: 'This mother was not negligent and the zoo did an awesome job handling the situation!

'This was an open exhibit! Which means the only thing separating you from the gorillas, is a 15 ish foot drop and a moat and some bushes!'

This comes as new video footage of Harambe the gorilla suggests he was trying to protect a three-year-old boy who fell into the zoo enclosure just minutes before the 400-pound animal was fatally shot.

Many are placing the blame squarely on the parents of a three-year-old boy

The small child said he wanted to get in the water before the incident, to which the mother, who was also watching several other children, replied: 'No, you're not, no, you're not,' according to one witness

Some said Harambe appeared to be guarding and defending the boy, but video footage also showed him dragging the three-year-old in the water

The clip shows Harambe standing guard over the boy in the corner of the moat, and the two even share a brief moment holding hands.

Witnesses said the gorilla was acting protectively in the tense situation, which may have been aggravated by panicked onlookers who screamed as they watched from above. 

Cincinnati Zoo Director Thane Maynard confirmed the boy was not under attack, but called it a 'life threatening situation' where the gorilla was 'agitated', 'disoriented', and 'behaving erratically'.

During a press conference on Monday afternoon, Maynard supported the animal response team's decision to kill Harambe, and said: 'Looking back we would make the same decision.'

He also insisted the zoo's barriers were secure, saying: 'We all need to work to make sure our families are safe. Do you know any four-year-olds? They can climb over anything.'

The incident, which was captured on a cell phone camera, has sparked an outcry of emotion, with thousands of mourners branding it a 'senseless death'. 

A mother who was at the zoo said she tried to stop the child, who authorities believe crawled past the railing and fell 10 feet into the gorilla's habitat, where he spent more than 10 minutes.   

'I tried to prevent it, I tried to grab him and I just couldn't get to him fast enough,' Brittany Nicely told WHIO. 

According to Nicely, the gorilla was acting protectively towards the boy and did not exhibit any threatening behavior.

A newly released video shows Harambe standing over the boy in the corner of the moat, appearing to shield him from the screaming crowd above.

The animal then dragged the boy by the leg, but the two shared a surprisingly tender moment when the three-year-old reached for Harambe's arm and the two briefly held hands.  

According to the fire department incident report, the gorilla was 'violently dragging and throwing the child', WLWT reported.

But Nicely contradicted the account, saying: 'What the first responders saw, I'm just not sure...They said he was violently throwing the child around, which seems crazy to me.

Police and prosecutors are investigating the zoo which shot Harambe the gorilla - and the federal government has received a formal complaint about its safety record.

Animal rights activists have made Cincinnati zoo the subject of a formal complaint to the United States Department of Agriculture and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA) following the shooting of the silverback gorilla after a three-year-old child fell into his enclosure.

Stop Animal Exploitation NOW (SAEN) alleges several potential violations of the Animal Welfare Act, which regulates animal exhibitors and is intended to safeguard both animals and zoo visitors.

It highlighted a recent safety breach at the zoo, when two polar bears escaped their enclosure and got into a service hallway. 

Separately, prosecutors have asked police to look into the death. 

The zoo was cited after the breach in March this year, prompting the campaign group to say that it raised questions over its approach to safety.

Michael Budkie, the spokesman for SAEN, said: 'If this enclosure had been constructed adequately a four-year-old child could not have penetrated it.

'This wasn't someone who came in with grappling hooks and ropes. You tell me. If a four-year-old child can get through the barrier is that a safe barrier?'

The group's complaint centers on the killing of Harambe being the second incident within just over ten weeks.

On 17 March 2016 the USDA cited the zoo when two polar bears – 'Little One' and 'Berit' - escaped their enclosure and entered the zoo's Bearline service hallway.

Escaped: Male polar bear Little One (right) and female Berit (left) managed to get out of their enclosure because of two doors left open in error. The USDA said human life could have been harmed

The discovery was made by a keeper when she entered the hallway to be confronted by a female bear about 30 feet away.

The shooting team and veterinary staff were notified by security and both bears were darted and ultimately safely returned to their enclosure.

The USDA found human error to be to blame after it was established that two doors were left open by the keeper.

In its report, the USDA warned that the incident 'could have resulted in human injury or death' and noted that this was a repeat citation.

The zoo has also previously been cited for their Eastern black and white colobus monkey enclosures that were found to be rotting and in a poor state of repair – in some sections planks of wood were completely worn away.

Budkie said: 'What happened this weekend made it very clear, the barriers are not adequate to keep people out of the enclosures. 

'It is clear that the Cincinnati Zoo has violated the Animal Welfare Act. It is also clear that the Cincinnati Zoo has had previous citations for violations.

'One was a repeat citation for a facility which is rare.'

A prosecutor's office says police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the three-year-old's entrance into the enclosure and the gorilla's death. 

The Hamilton County prosecutor's office said Tuesday that police will confer with prosecutors after their investigation is complete.

Cincinnati police said over the weekend that no charges were planned. However, spokeswoman Tiffaney Hardey says police are reviewing the matter and continuing to gather information.

'They have a picture of the boy sitting in front of the gorilla moments before they shot him.' 

Kim O'Connor told WLWT she heard the boy talking about getting into the water before she heard a splash, followed by frantic yelling when onlookers realized he was inside the enclosure. 

According to O'Connor, the gorilla looked like he was trying to protect the boy from panicked bystanders who may have aggravated the tense situation.

'I don't know if the screaming did it or too many people hanging on the edge, if he thought we were coming in, but then he pulled the boy down away further from the big group,' she said.

Harambe later dragged the three-year-old out of the moat before he was fatally shot with a rifle while the boy was still between the animal's legs.

The zoo director confirmed the gorilla did not appear to be attacking the child, but he described it as 'an extremely strong animal in an agitated situation'.

'You're talking about an animal that's over 400 pounds and extremely strong. So no, the child wasn't under attack but all sorts of things could happen in a situation like that. He certainly was at risk,' Maynard told WLWT.

During a press conference on Monday, Maynard said Harambe was 'behaving erratically', before adding: 'The child wasn't just being endangered, but dragged around by the ankle and hurt.'

He explained that tranquilizing the gorilla, which could have taken several attempts, would have left the boy in danger since the effect would not have been immediate.

Brittany Nicely (left and right) said she tried to stop the child from going into the enclosure but couldn't grab him in time. She then tried to calm the boy's mother has the chaos unfolded 

The zoo celebrated Harambe's birthday on Friday, just one the day before he died (left). Many questioned whether the zoo could have used a tranquilizer first, but Maynard said it could have had the opposite effect

He also said in a statement released Sunday: 'The impact from the dart could agitate the animal and cause the situation to get much worse.

'We are heartbroken about losing Harambe, but a child's life was in danger and a quick decision had to be made.'

He supported the zoo's dangerous animal response team for their decision to kill Harambe, and said: 'They made a tough choice and they made the right choice because they saved that little boy's life.'  

During Monday's press conference, Maynard said he wasn't there to 'point fingers' but said: 'We all need to work to make sure our families are safe.' 

'We're the ones who took the loss on this- you can trust me, a lot of people expressed concerns, but it doesn't affect anyone as much as the people at the zoo.

'This is a very big loss to the zoo- not just an emotional loss, but a loss to a key conservation and breeding program.' 

On Monday, the zoo director insisted the horizontal barriers were secure and said: 'We take safety very seriously and we are keenly interested in improvement.

'Any of us could climb over barriers if we choose. As I said, you can lock your car or lock your house, but if someone wants to get in, they can.'

He cited the incident last week in Chile, where a man with a suicide note in his pocket stripped down and broke into a lion enclosure at the Santiago Zoo where he was mauled before two of the animals were shot dead. 

The animal response team at Cincinnato Zoo had practiced drills and 'table top discussions' after the incident, without realizing they would be facing a similar scenario on Saturday.

While safety measures are being evaluated, Maynard said the gorilla exhibit is expected to reopen next weekend without citing specific security improvements. 

Harambe (right) was raised at the Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville, Texas (left) before he was moved to Cincinnati in 2014. He is a western lowland gorilla, which the World Wildlife Fund deemed critically endangered

Zoo director Maynard noted it was the first time the team had killed a zoo animal in such an emergency situation, and he called it 'a very sad day'.

He said said in a statement: 'The Zoo security team's quick response saved the child's life. 

'We are all devastated that this tragic accident resulted in the death of a critically-endangered gorilla. This is a huge loss for the Zoo family and the gorilla population worldwide.' 

Jerry Stones, who worked at the Gladys Porter Zoo, in Bronwsville, Texas, where Harambe lived before he was transferred in 2014, said he was devastated by the news.

Stones, who raised the gorilla, told the NY Daily News: 'It tore me a new one. An old man can cry, too. He was a special guy in my life. It's a sad day for us.'

He added: 'He grew up to be a pretty, beautiful male. He was very intelligent. His mind was going constantly. He was just such a sharp character.'

Western lowland gorillas are deemed critically endangered by the World Wildlife Fund, but Maynard said Harambe's death would not be the end of his lineage, since viable sperm was stored at the zoo. 

Gorilla World has been closed since the incident on Saturday, although Maynard said it was expected to reopen by next weekend. The rest of the zoo has been open as usual.

In March, two curious polar bears at the zoo wandered into a behind-the-scenes service hallway through an open den door, but never left a secondary containment area.

The zoo said the 17-year-old female Berit and the 26-year-old male Little One, entered an 'inappropriate' area but remained contained and were never loose or a threat to the public.

During that incident, zoo officials said staff followed protocols and safely returned the bears to their main holding area within two hours.

A gorilla was shot dead in an American zoo because a child fell into an enclosure

In the United States, Ohio Zoo employees had to shoot a gorilla. The accident happened after a three-year-old child fell into the animal enclosure. The boy was taken to the hospital with injuries.

With bated breath, visitors to the Cincinnati Zoo watched as a huge gorilla named Harambe held a little boy in his arms, carried him and even played with him. As soon as the zoo staff saw this, they sounded the alarm. The gorilla is considered a dangerous animal. How the child got into the aviary, no one noticed.

"The little boy apparently climbed over the fence, then made his way through the bushes into the enclosure. Then he somehow got into a rather large ditch. He may have fallen there. Thank God, he was not badly hurt. And the gorilla came up to him, took in his arms and carried him around the enclosure. Our experts considered that this situation threatened the boy's life, "said the director of the Cincinnati Zoo Thane Maynard.

The child spent about ten minutes in the enclosure. Despite the fact that the monkey treated him quite friendly, it was still decided to kill the animal. The 17-year-old male gorilla weighs over 180 kilograms, is very strong and can be extremely aggressive in the wild. As a result, Harambe was shot dead.

Continued:

The parents of the boy who fell into the enclosure are required to be punished for the death of the gorilla

"Our team did what it had to do. It was a difficult decision, but the decision was right: they saved the life of a little boy. Everything could end very badly. In general, gorillas are dangerous," said Thane Maynard.

See also:

In a Norwegian zoo, a zebra was fed to lions in front of children

Zoo staff acted according to the instructions, which are available just in case there is a threat to visitors from animals. The decision to simply euthanize the monkey was abandoned only because tranquilizers act with some time delay. And in this situation it was necessary to act quickly. The boy was taken to a nearby hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Now it remains to find out how the parents did not keep track of their baby. And why for so long no one was worried about the disappearance of a three-year-old child.

Sergey Psurtsev, Dmitry Denezhkin, TV Center.

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A 17-year-old gorilla was shot at an American zoo, in an enclosure to

Forest dude

Author:

Forestdude

May 31, 2016 09:15

Tags: videos  gorillas  zoos  

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On Saturday, at the Cincinnati American Zoo, a 4-year-old child fell into the enclosure of a 17-year-old gorilla named Harambe. According to eyewitnesses, the boy crawled through the fence and fell into the water from a height of 3.7 meters. In the video, which was filmed by one of the visitors, it is shown that the boy stood up and took a few steps. At this time, a gorilla ran up to the child, which at first just looked at the baby for some time, and then began to drag him around the enclosure.

Source:

Experts note that if a 160-kilogram gorilla were injected with a sedative, then it would only work after a few hours, so the zoo team decided that the best option would be to shoot the animal.

Source:

The zoo staff managed to help the child before the arrival of the police. The boy was immediately hospitalized with minor bruises. Now his life is not in danger.

Source:

Despite expert opinion, a large number of people on social media expressed their outrage at the gorilla's death, blaming the boy's parents for not following him. Others believe that the zoo did not make the gorilla enclosure safe enough.

Source:

The zoo responded to the criticism by stating that this was the first breach of the barrier in 38 years and that a decision had to be made immediately to save the child's life.

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On her Facebook* page, the boy's mother responded to the criticism and allegations of negligence with the following response: “I watch my children closely.

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