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A 2-year old at the Pittsburgh zoo was being held by his mother on the railing over an exhibit of wild African Painted Dogs. He fell and some how managed to miss the net. He was mauled by the dogs. They were able to get most of the dogs away from the boy but they ended up having to shoot one who was being overly aggressive. The boy didn't make it.

This story breaks my heart. I feel bad saying this but I really hope that he died in the fall so that he didn't suffer too much.

For me, this raises the question of zoo safety. It seems like we hear more and more stories about people getting into the enclosures at zoos and being either injured or killed. What can be done about it though? I mean in a big way it's not really the zoos' fault. It's the fault of stupid people. On the other hand there are a lot of stupid people so maybe they should start anticipating this. Maybe they can have higher railing that would make it impossible to stand on or have more zoo workers standing around the exhibit to prevent the inappropriate behavior that leads to people ending up in the exhibits.

Not all of these stories end up bad though. A few years ago in a zoo in Canada a young boy fell into a gorilla exhibit. The silver back in the exhibit protected the boy from the rest of the gorillas and drug him to the door the zoologist used to get in and out of the exhibit. They were able to quickly get the boy out of the exhibit with minimal injuries thanks to the gorilla. This story doesn't really apply so much to the other story but since the first incident is so sad I wanted to close on a more lighthearted note.

There are a lot of stupid people, there is no way I would hold my child over an enclosure of wild animals, even if they were fluffy bunnies. I suppose that the zoos should prepare for stupid people who can't read signs or think for themselves, but I hate the thought that they have to go to the expense of either more staffing or taller fencing or whatever it would take.

Personally I think the zoos should be able to sue and prosecute people who violate their safety guidelines and get get hurt. Do that a couple of times and maybe people will think more.

I wondered how his mother feels.

I read about this incident when it happened and it is easy to quickly place full blame on the stupidity of the mother. But stupid people exist and zoos cannot have only a 4 foot tall wall separating the stupid people from the wild animals. The zoo is just as much at fault as the mother, in my opinion. She sat her little boy on the wall to give him a better view. He probably fidgeted and he fell. The net was only designed to catch purses, cameras and wallets. It couldn't support the weight of the boy.

I feel bad saying this but I really hope that he died in the fall so that he didn't suffer too much.

I had similar thoughts but the autopsy shows the boy did not die from the fall. He died from being mauled by a pack of wild dogs. How horrible can a death be? Being ripped apart by wild dogs is just horrific. And all that kept those dogs away from visitors was a 4' tall fence that one mother thought would make a great seat for her toddler.

I cannot fathom how that mom felt as she watched her little boy get ripped to shreds in front of her own eyes. What will the rest of her life be like now? She knows she messed up. What do you think her husband will do in reaction to his sons horrific death?

Chris I was wondering about the autopsy but they never said anything else about it here. How awful! That poor child.

I'm not a parent so I didn't even question the mother's behavior, well other than her holding the boy on the railing. Anyway, I've talked to several people about this and every single parent I've talked to has said they would have jumped in after the boy to keep try and keep the dogs away. I'm not saying I agree with this or that this would be a good idea at all but I found it interesting that it was the first things most of them said.

" Dr. Baker said the boy died after several agonizing minutes from the wounds he suffered from the mauling attack, not from the fall itself."

The zoo discourages parents letting their children sit on railings.

The parents were treated for shock after the incident.

For me this doesnt raise questions on zoo safety, but does bring up the consequences of the poor choices parents can make in regards to caring for their child.

Even if we say it's reasonable for children to be mauled to death for the poor choices of their parents we should take into account that a major part of a zoo's attendance is actually these children whose cognitive skills have not fully developed... anyway, they can wander off.

It's unfortunate that the child had to pay for his parents bad choice.

The zoo shouldn't be blamed for this. The enclosures are meant to keep the animals from getting to the humans. But humans are much better problem solvers than animals, and if some jackass wants to get in there to pet the wild dogs, or polar bears they can figure it out.

I've been to plenty of zoos where all that seperates you from the lions and crocodiles is some chain link fence. I COULD get in there, if i were stupid enough to decide that was a good idea.

Hundreds of other people managed to show the wild dogs to their kids without letting them fall to a horrific death.

this is horrible, and i feel for this family, but what the hell?

Kevin wrote:Even if we say it's reasonable for children to be mauled to death for the poor choices of their parents we should take into account that a major part of a zoo's attendance is actually these children whose cognitive skills have not fully developed... anyway, they can wander off.

Which is precisely why they need parents/legal guardians to make decisions on their behalf. Should I put him up on the railing, or simply hold him up to see, etc.