A Wisconsin woman remained hospitalized Saturday after her fingers were bitten off Friday by a bear at a Manitowoc zoo.Police say Tracy Weiler, 47, of Manitowoc, passed barriers and warning signs at the Lincoln Park Zoo and was trying to feed two Asiatic black bears around 11:30 a.m. Friday.Capt. Scott Luchterhand told the Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter that one of the bears bit off her thumb and forefinger and parts of her middle and ring fingers.
Her boyfriend, Lawrence Bosworth, 51, also of Manitowoc, tried to pry the bear's mouth off her hand and also was bitten, Luchterhand said. He was taken to Aurora Medical Center in Two Rivers.Mayor Justin Nickels' office said in a news release Saturday that both adults had been drinking. Weiler's 3-year-old grandchild, who was with the pair, was not harmed.
Weiler "was trying to feed the bear something out of a plastic bag" after going beyond a railing and putting her hand through a fence, Luchterhand said.The two bears, named Moe and Honey, were isolated in their pen, and a veterinarian assisted the Manitowoc Police Department in its investigation. The bears will not be euthanized."Clearly, these are large, powerful animals," said Aaron Buchholz, a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources wildlife biologist.Bears in captivity "might even be more dangerous" than those in the wild, because bears that aren't used to people have a fear of them and stay away, he said.
Animals that appear tame are "still capable of really hurting you or killing you," he said.
reminds me of that chick who got mauled by the polar bears
source
Her boyfriend, Lawrence Bosworth, 51, also of Manitowoc, tried to pry the bear's mouth off her hand and also was bitten, Luchterhand said. He was taken to Aurora Medical Center in Two Rivers.Mayor Justin Nickels' office said in a news release Saturday that both adults had been drinking. Weiler's 3-year-old grandchild, who was with the pair, was not harmed.
Weiler "was trying to feed the bear something out of a plastic bag" after going beyond a railing and putting her hand through a fence, Luchterhand said.The two bears, named Moe and Honey, were isolated in their pen, and a veterinarian assisted the Manitowoc Police Department in its investigation. The bears will not be euthanized."Clearly, these are large, powerful animals," said Aaron Buchholz, a Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources wildlife biologist.Bears in captivity "might even be more dangerous" than those in the wild, because bears that aren't used to people have a fear of them and stay away, he said.
Animals that appear tame are "still capable of really hurting you or killing you," he said.
reminds me of that chick who got mauled by the polar bears
source
Last edited by blademaster (2010-03-06 18:05:16)
