British student, 19, mauled by 400lb tiger in Thailand at popular tourist attraction

[boomerangutang]

earlier mention of very hard body: Could it be the daily dosage of drugs atrophies the muscles?

I'd be surprised if daily dosages of tranquilizers didn't have adverse, probably permanently damaging, effects on body and mind.

Suggestion to theme park operators with animals: Do what the Japanese would do: make a big cute cuddly robotic copy of animal(s). You could add audio, movements, ...even odor. Leave wild animals to the wild.

[IMA_FARANG]

A 400lb Tiger is perfectly capable of grabbing a 150lb human female (lets just assume she was a big girl) in it's mouth and leaping a 15 foot wall in one bound with her in it's mouth without ever touching that wall.

There are absolutely documented reports from India where a full grown Tiger grabbed a 100 KILOGRAM cow and leaped over a 5 METER high wall with that cow in it's mouth.

She was lucky the tiger was probably drugged.

Even "declawed" a 400lb tiger could kill a normal human being with just a blow from it's paw.

They are big, strong, animals designed by nature as ambush hunters who ambush and kill kill their prey as quickly as possible.

Only a fool "plays" with Tigers ..... even when they don't intend to hurt you they are so strong that what to them is a playful blow can seriously injure a human being.

[ginjag]

Many many years ago on safari in Kenya we were going on a morning photo -Tsavo park trip. The guide told everyone that if any ladies were on their (period) NOT to go on the safari. What animals reacted to this I was never sure BUT it was fact that SOME get the scent and will attack the person. My memory is very clear, but I am not saying there is anything in this incident --BUT people have to know these important things.

This is beside the sort of Russian roulette that people gamble with dangerous animals. Show them in suitable surroundings if they cannot go back to the wild, as we can learn from them especially if most persons do not have the money for actual trips to distant countries.

Please do not jump on me -I am aware that tigers are not found naturally in Africa.

[SinCityGr8One]

The same goes when people swim with the dolphins. Dolphins have been known to show aggression when there are female clients in the swim group. Flipper will show he is horney. And you don't want something that's built like a torpedo to show you he is horney.

Sent from my GT-S5360B

[yougivemebaby]

If they're going to declaw and drug them might as well pop out the 5 inch canines. ! I'm sure the monks will sleep just fine.

[CHRISTIANa9]

It can never be overstated....Captive wild animals and humans never mix well. Especially those with teeth, claws and tusks designed to maim and kill. As far as I know, these animals can strike at any possible moment. This could be a result of stress, sickness, hunger, or even just a bad toothache. Cases of elephant and crocodile attacks have also been in the news, along with this tiger attack. It's up to us humans to understand the importance of maintaining a safe distance, and stop trusting these numb nuts who say wild animals in captivity are tame and safe to handle.

And humans too especially when money is involved

[Somtamnication]

My wife and I had our photos taken sitting alongside a tiger at Nong Nooch. It took a while to persuade us and several others watched us before following suit. The tiger was obviously drugged although it's handler said he wasn't but what I remember most was he how solid he was. I was expecting cat like sinew and muscle under the fur but he was like concrete. The thought of one of those beauties attacking you is scary enough to never make me do it again.

Congratulations! You just gave money to the tiger mafia.

[PhoenixRising]

I went there years ago and it did not look safe so I declined to go near them and the people there were quite rude. So I walked away and found a male deer taking a rest on the ground. I was stunned that he didn't mind us touching him. That was far less dangerous and wonderful. He was even more beautiful than the tigers and I didn't pay for that.

[Skywalker69]

One does not pet a wild deadly predator. Period. Close down the Tiger Temple it´s a bad place.

[circusman]

I don't fault the young lady for taking the chance of petting a tiger. It wasn't the tiger she was petting that attacked her, rather a rogue cat who was probably jealous of the attention.

You don't fault the girl? It was the tigers fault then ? You idiot.

[jackr]

'Holiday of a lifetime'

'Deadly animal'

'Leapt into'

'Sank teeth'

'Scarred for life'

Gotta love the British Daily Mail for its trashy and sensationalist reporting eh? And people actually buy this paper more than any other except the equally awful Sun.

granted the Daily mail on the same level as the The times, but what in anything you quoted is not factually correct ?

So let me guess. You are British and The Daily is British, so no matter how asinine the mag is, you're going to defend it because...it's British and it's the British thing to do.

Yea, got it.

This is one of the saddest posts I've had the displeasure to read for some time.

[jackr]

Guilty.......Went there in 2007 with my soon to be wife. The one near Kanchanaburi. The whole time I was there I was praying for two things. One, that the tigers didn't smell the fear on me, and two, that they didn't think that I smelled really, really good. Normally I make it a point to try and keep myself in circumstances where I am on top of the food chain, but in a moment of weakness I decided to take a trip there and experience it for myself. It is the most scared I have ever been in my life, at least from a physical threat standpoint. I knew that one day I would hear of someone being attacked there.....I knew that their guarantee of safety because they raised them meant absolutely nothing but I was stupid enough to do it anyway. I'm just very glad we didn't become lunch for one of them!!!!!!!!

Went to the Kan one donkey's years ago when it was free (40 baht donation). Don't remember any 'guarantee of safety' but do remember having to sign a form that if I got eaten it wasn't their fault.

[ginjag]

I don't fault the young lady for taking the chance of petting a tiger. It wasn't the tiger she was petting that attacked her, rather a rogue cat who was probably jealous of the attention.

You don't fault the girl? It was the tigers fault then ? You idiot.

Why is he an idiot, his remark was honest and what he felt. why call posters idiots, especially in this way. What was the circus act you performed ?? those that made the kids laugh.??? come on lay off the strong stuff lighten up.

Not the fault of the girl OR tiger.

It is the fault of having the moneymaking racket in the first place, The public are curious and are assured by the mafia tiger exploiters that it's safe, do they really care ?? no for if they did they also know that wild animals can be unpredictable, so for the safety of the public this shouldn't be allowed. END IT.

Edited August 31, 2013 by ginjag

[stoli]

I was completely surprised to read that it was a 400 lb. weight. Was this story written in America? Why not kilo's?

[lovetotravel]

I was completely surprised to read that it was a 400 lb. weight. Was this story written in America? Why not kilo's?

Why not read the article to find out where it was written?

[Ulic]

I don't go for any of these types of attractions. Tiger shows, dolphin shows, snake charmer shows. All of them are a form of cruelty to animals for entertainment purposes.

[sunshine51]

Seems like Ms Brennan didn't know how to speak Tiger.

Nor did it seem that she knew anything about Tiger body

postures & when to leave them alone. It's not Ms Brennan's

fault...the blame lays with the operators of these "parks"

that IMO should be closed nationwide.

Anyway...she seems to be rather chipper about the ordeal

as the pictures will show you, plus she'll have a good story

for her grandkids as long as she never visits one of these

"parks" again.

[thomash]

I have been to the tiger temple and I have

ridden a motorbike on the roads of Thailand

and the Thai drivers are way more dangerous

then the tigers at the tiger temple!

[boomerangutang]

Many many years ago on safari in Kenya we were going on a morning photo -Tsavo park trip. The guide told everyone that if any ladies were on their (period) NOT to go on the safari. What animals reacted to this I was never sure BUT it was fact that SOME get the scent and will attack the person. My memory is very clear, but I am not saying there is anything in this incident --BUT people have to know these important things.

This is beside the sort of Russian roulette that people gamble with dangerous animals. Show them in suitable surroundings if they cannot go back to the wild, as we can learn from them especially if most persons do not have the money for actual trips to distant countries.

Please do not jump on me -I am aware that tigers are not found naturally in Africa.

Year ago, I read about a cougar jumped and killed a woman jogger in California, near a city (Sacramento). The jogger was menstrating.

There are actually some tigers in Africa. There's a relatively small program to acclimate them there. Main reason: the voracious appetite of Chinese for all things related to big cats. The Chinese think the pulverized bones, particularly of penis, gives men hard-ons. It's sick. Written on the extinction tombstone of big cats: "Thanks to sexually inept Chinese men, our species vanished."

[Chao Lao Beach]

Is this the temple circus at Kan?

[Chang_paarp]

I was completely surprised to read that it was a 400 lb. weight. Was this story written in America? Why not kilo's?

The English still use the measurements they created in spite of trying to be part of Europe.

[ginjag]

I was completely surprised to read that it was a 400 lb. weight. Was this story written in America? Why not kilo's?

The English still use the measurements they created in spite of trying to be part of Europe.

I know we are so stupid.

[DocN]

it looks like the brains stay at home if tourists leave for vacation.....

A bit like the brains stay at home behaviour exhibited by personages living in Thailand who profess not to be tourists on vacation, but "residents" you mean ?

This may have not been the smartest move, but are you suggesting all accountability is on this girl ?

The tiger temple has a great deal of accoutability in this case... for encouraging the girl to do this, for a fee, I assume

Having been to the tiger temple, there is "hard selling" by people at the temple for tourists to get their photo's taken simply because they are making money out it, so they are going to tell somebody anything to get their hands on the cash...

these are wild animals and the temple should not even encourage this...

Yes, the accountability is totally on the girl...and every other moron, who goes to these places and believes the fairytale of the "peaceful" tigers, living in "harmony" with the "peaceful" monks, just because the Buddha wanted it to be this way.

[wilcopops]

I never said British tourists are stupid, but this one clearly was! These tigers are drugged, de-clawed and god-knows what else, to benefit these "monks".

Tourists need to read up on this and other tiger slave trade businesses before embarking on these tours. One reason I never go to Phuket Zoo. The tiger there is vewy vewy sweepy.

"These tigers are drugged, de-clawed and god-knows what else, to benefit these "monks"." - this kind of statement is unsubstantiated nonsense.

The Temple has been an accident waiting to happen - there have been repeated concerns about safety at the place and it is guilty of a multitude of sins, but if you are going to criticise te place - and it richly deserves it - at least get your facts straight.

[wilcopops]

My wife and I had our photos taken sitting alongside a tiger at Nong Nooch. It took a while to persuade us and several others watched us before following suit. The tiger was obviously drugged although it's handler said he wasn't but what I remember most was he how solid he was. I was expecting cat like sinew and muscle under the fur but he was like concrete. The thought of one of those beauties attacking you is scary enough to never make me do it again.

"The tiger was obviously drugged" - are you an expert on tiger behaviour? How on earth can you say an animal was drugged - this sort of "off-the-cuff" statement really does little but obscure the real issues that surround the treatment of wildlife and captive animals in Thailand.

[wilcopops]

'Holiday of a lifetime'

'Deadly animal'

'Leapt into'

'Sank teeth'

'Scarred for life'

Gotta love the British Daily Mail for its trashy and sensationalist reporting eh? And people actually buy this paper more than any other except the equally awful Sun.

granted the Daily mail on the same level as the The times, but what in anything you quoted is not factually correct ?

Is a tiger not a deadly animal ?

Did the tiger not leap onto her ?

did the tiger not sink its teeth in her ?

and are you suggesting she will not be scarred for life ?...based on the photo one suspects she will

The language of papers like the Mail doesn't really help - the temple needs some serious analysis by authoritative sources rather than sensationalist journalists if it is ever to be put to rights.

[wilcopops]

Really, if she can get away with this stupid behavior she should try to cross a street in BKK blindfolded next time. it looks like the brains stay at home if tourists leave for vacation.....

Surely, like any organisation offering tourists entertainment, it is the responsibility of the temple to ensure that even the most errant visitor does not become endangered on their premises. In fact I don't think the girl did anything that was forbidden by the temple - the basic problem is that safety there is based on the hope that nothing bad will happen rather than concrete - foolproof - safety procedures.

Edited August 31, 2013 by wilcopops

[wilcopops]

Perhaps it's about time to release the tigers and put the monks down! Or, something like that

the tigers can NEVER be released into the wild - please don't have any illusions about that

[wilcopops]

Hmmmm - I'm noticing how this story is over 8 weeks old, yet we are just hearing about it now (and in that particular media outlet) ? I tried some googling and all the stories are either the same, or link to the same as in the OP, nothing older than a couple days despite this woman being back in the UK for at least 6 weeks now (according to those stories).

Odd that it didn't even get reported (and have at least 5 pages of discussion) on Thaivisa either. Masterful job by the Tourism of Thailand ministry at covering this up, or, maybe, we aren't getting the full, true story ?

Not say that this would be the first time someone has done something, then returned to their home country, then concocted some wild story to cover up whatever they did to make it look like they weren't to blame.

Nah, that would never happen (again........and again.......and yet again), would it ? I guess that leaves us with just a masterful cover up..........

Oh, btw - checked up on "featureworld.co.uk" which is shown on most of the pictures in the article. From their website:

Sell My Story…

SELLING YOUR STORY WITH ALISON – YOUR ONLINE MEDIA AGENT

Your story told how you want it to be in Women’s Magazines, National Newspapers and National TV. Perhaps selling your real-life story would help pay for a holiday? (my bolding)

Maybe you've read a real-life story in a national newspaper or women’s magazine and thought ‘That could be me?’ You might even dream of selling your life story and becoming famous or being on TV?

Yep - sounds perfectly legit to me !

And the "rossparry.co.uk" shown on the other pic ? A professional press agent website.)

Whistles as he looks away...........

"Not say that this would be the first time someone has done something, then returned to their home country, then concocted some wild story to cover up whatever they did to make it look like they weren't to blame."

Really? - I think it would also not be the first time tyhat the temple has tried to hush up events itself. however outside Thailand their influence is considerably less.

[wilcopops]

It would seem that most of these tigers have been rescued as cubs when the mother has been killed by traders selling the bits.

They have been raised by people and therefore have no fear of people nor are they able to fend for themselves in the wild.

If they were released back into the wild they would either starve or seek out human habitation and very likely kill people as easy prey.

However that does not excuse them being used for profit.

I have been to the tiger temple in Kanchanaburi and as well as the entry fee everything is charged for.

The place was full of tourists with a big line up waiting to go touch and have their photo taken with the comatose tigers.

That place must take in a huge amount of money each day.

Would never go back and would advise others not to go.

"It would seem that most of these tigers have been rescued as cubs when the mother has been killed by traders selling the bits."

THIS IS ABSOLUTELY UNTRUE!!!

I do wish people would research the place before making inane comments like this.

the Temple has ILLEGALLY bred about 100 animals in that place - do you seriously think that there is an endless supply of tiger cubs for people to pet from tigers in the wild???????

Even the story of how the first animals ended up there has been called into question.

PS - there probably only about 200 wildtigers in Thailand all together - hardly enough to supply the temples needs if you killed every new mother tiger for their newborns.

Edited August 31, 2013 by wilcopops