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[Monster Zero]

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/05/27/zoo-wolf-euthanized-biting-child/28042207/

OSHKOSH, Wis. — Authorities followed protocol when euthanizing a male wolf at Menominee Park Zoo here after the animal "nipped" a child late last week, a city official said Wednesday.

The incident occurred when a child entered a non-public area of the park Friday and put fingers through a fence, said Ray Maurer, the city's parks director, who declined to disclose the child's age or gender, citing federal privacy laws. The child was transported to a local hospital for treatment of minor finger injuries.

Calling the situation unfortunate and the first of its kind in at least six years, Maurer said the state Division of Public Health mandated authorities kill the animal after the child's parents said they did not want to put their child through rabies shots. A brain sample from the wolf then was sent to Madison for a rabies test, which came back negative.

"There's no other way to test for rabies," Maurer said.

Therefore, when a wild animal bites someone, it "makes sense" to euthanize the animal, and doing so is common practice in such cases, Miller said.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, raccoons, skunks, foxes and most other carnivores should be regarded as rabid unless proved negative by a laboratory test.

When a wild animal bites a person, there usually are two options: give the person anti-rabies prophylaxis or euthanize the animal, said Anne Boyce, environmental health supervisor for the Winnebago County Health Department.

Upon receiving a report of an animal with possible rabies biting someone, Health Department staff contact the Wisconsin Department of Health Services for guidance, and if warranted, has a veterinarian euthanize the animal, Boyce said.

The situation saddens Ronya Dehn, 40, of Oshkosh, who visits the zoo two to three times a week and even donated money to the zoo's wolf exhibit.

"I purposely donate for these wolves, and to me, it's like taking my donation and throwing it away," Dehn said. "I felt like my donations went to waste through human error. Everybody makes mistakes, but this was (a lack of) common sense."

Zoo officials, along with the Winnebago Health Department, the state Division of Public Health and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, continue to investigate the incident and the events leading up to it, Maurer said. He did not know how long that investigation might take.

"We're still looking into how it happened and where," he said, noting it was too soon to tell whether there will be any sort of reparations or disciplinary action as the result of the incident.

The wolf that died, Rebel, was one of four siblings the zoo received last fall after authorities euthanized the last of the previous pack because of health and age issues, Maurer said. All the new wolves are about 12 years old.

Meanwhile, city leaders likely will not replace the male wolf that died, Maurer said.

"It's not that simple," he said. "Another wolf wouldn't be accepted into the pack."

Sucks for the wolf, he was just doing wolf things

 

[……forgetit]

Obligatory

Really sucks for the wolf though

 

[Speevy]

The king in the north.

 

[GoldenEye 007]

So anti vaxxers killed the wolf?

 

[cdyhybrid]

What the fuck were the kid's parents doing the whole time?

 

[Smiley90]

"Okay you have two options, either get a harmless little poke with a syringe or KILL THE ANIMAL YOU WERE TOO STUPID TO STAY AWAY FROM"

"we'll take the latter doc, I don't want my child to get autism, fuck the wolves"

?

 

[Sage00]

Why was a child allowed to enter an area where they could be bitten by a wolf? The zoo are completely to blame here. Lucky he didn't lose a hand and the poor wolf had to suffer.

 

[Kaako]

Poor wolf didn't deserve this. Parents need to watch their kids at all times.

 

[Massive Duck. C.M.]

All kinds of wrong

 

[Makoto Yuki]

The incident occurred when a child entered a non-public area of the park Friday and put fingers through a fence

Maybe if the parents were actually looking after their child, and not letting him/her go into non-public areas, this wolf would still be alive.

As harsh as this sounds, some people should never be parents.

 

[Stet]

oshkosh b'gosh

 

[jerry1594]

That's stupid. If anything the parents should get smacked.

 

[FunkyMunkey]

euthanize the parents and let the wolf raise the kid

 

[Kieli]

"Okay you have two options, either get a harmless little poke with a syringe or KILL THE ANIMAL YOU WERE TOO STUPID TO STAY AWAY FROM"

"we'll take the latter doc, I don't want my child to get autism, fuck the wolves"

?

I thought there was no reliable treatment for rabies? Death rate is astonishingly high with the exception of a few remarkable cases.

Or is this a preventative measure during the incubation period in case the animal is rabies-positive?

 

[Reset]

Shouldn't there have been a fence so that kids cannot get near the cages/gates...

Maybe if the parents were actually looking after their child, and not letting him/her go into non-public areas, this wolf would still be alive.

Maybe if the wolf didn't bite the child, it wouldn't have died.
Only the wolf is here to blame!

 

[orochi91]

Maybe if the parents were actually looking after their child, and not letting him/her go into non-public areas, this wolf would still be alive.

As harsh as this sounds, some people should never be parents.

+1

Agreed.

That poor fucking wolf.

 

[GoldenEye 007]

I thought there was no reliable treatment for rabies? Death rate is astonishingly high with the exception of a few remarkable cases.

Or is this a preventative measure during the incubation period in case the animal is rabies-positive?

The latter.

 

[Stinkles]

Maybe if the parents were actually looking after their child, and not letting him/her go into non-public areas, this wolf would still be alive.

As harsh as this sounds, some people should never be parents.

Or if they let him get rabies shots. Or if we assumed factually that unless it is secretly a bat, there's an infinitesimally small chance of the wolf having rabies and give the kid rubber boots since he's literally more likely to be struck by lightning.

 

[Zekes!]

Fuck those people

I was bitten by a radioactive wolf as a teen and look at how I turned out

 

[Merc_]

euthanize the parents and let the wolf raise the kid

i like the cut of your jib

 

[Smiley90]

I thought there was no reliable treatment for rabies? Death rate is astonishingly high with the exception of a few remarkable cases.

Or is this a preventative measure during the incubation period in case the animal is rabies-positive?

This is correct. That's why you should go to the doc after an animal bite anyway, even if you don't show symptoms. If you wait forever (read: more than 3 months) and GET full-blown rabies, death rate approaches 100%. Prophylaxis is nearly 100% effective, though.

But killing the wolf because you don't want your kid to get a little shot (it's like a flu shot) is just stupid.

Also I'm gonna speculate ZOO ANIMALS are way less likely to actually have rabies since they're less exposed to rabies-carriers AND under constant vet supervision.

 

[Erico]

So this kid is basically Joffrey.

 

[Sage00]

I thought there was no reliable treatment for rabies? Death rate is astonishingly high with the exception of a few remarkable cases.

Or is this a preventative measure during the incubation period in case the animal is rabies-positive?

That's right, in the scenario post-exposure prophylaxis would be administered. Which, by the way, is an ongoing process of shots and tests that lasts months. Hardly 'a harmless little shot.' I don't blame anyone for not wanting to do it until it's proven the animal actually had rabies. Unfortunately using brain tissue is the only way to do that.

 

[ibyea]

Yeah, screw those parents.

 

[ItIsOkBro]

"Okay you have two options, either get a harmless little poke with a syringe or KILL THE ANIMAL YOU WERE TOO STUPID TO STAY AWAY FROM"

"we'll take the latter doc, I don't want my child to get autism, fuck the wolves"

?

Never mind I've been informed that rabies treatment is no small matter.

 

[Smiley90]

That's right, in the scenario post-exposure prophylaxis would be administered. Which, by the way, is an ongoing process of shots and tests that lasts months. Hardly 'a harmless little shot.' I don't blame anyone for not wanting to do it until it's proven the animal actually had rabies. Unfortunately using brain tissue is the only way to do that.

It's roughly 4 doses over the course of 4 weeks, each time with side effects like a flu shot. Hardly unbearable.

 

[Syncytia]

I thought there was no reliable treatment for rabies? Death rate is astonishingly high with the exception of a few remarkable cases.

Or is this a preventative measure during the incubation period in case the animal is rabies-positive?

There is RIG, or Rabies Immunoglobulin which can be used. It's antibodies obtained from vaccinated individuals. This is known as passive immunization, not sure anti-vax viewpoints on this, but it isn't an actual vaccine as antibodies have a half life of 21 days and will eventually all be gone. Ig is just the product of the vaccination and can only provide protection for a short time.

Unvaccinated individuals are recommended to get RIG and the vaccine after a potential exposure I believe. The IgG helps provide protection while the immune system mounts a response to the vaccine and then creates its own antibodies.

 

[Lashley]

euthanize the parents and let the wolf raise the kid

Haha I like this

 

[Massive Duck. C.M.]

That's right, in the scenario post-exposure prophylaxis would be administered. Which, by the way, is an ongoing process of shots and tests that lasts months. Hardly 'a harmless little shot.' I don't blame anyone for not wanting to do it until it's proven the animal actually had rabies. Unfortunately using brain tissue is the only way to do that.

The outcome was the parents' fault, and they should have been made to act accordingly.

 

[bundaberg]

And this is why we don't want rabies in Australia so that the dingoes can eat the babies and not be put to sleep.

 

[Sage00]

The outcome was the parents' fault, and they should have been made to act accordingly.

I don't know about zoos wherever you are or this is, but I'd expect to allow a child to wander around a bit by themself without getting bitten by a vicious animal. Was there zero security in this place? How do you just wander into a non-public area?

 

[Count of Monte Sawed-Off]

My sister got bit by a wolf once, she just took the rabies shots. But I guess the treatment would suck for the child, but poor wolf.

 

[Massive Duck. C.M.]

I don't know about zoos wherever you are or this is, but I'd expect to allow a child to wander around a bit by themself without getting bitten by a vicious animal. Was there zero security in this place? How do you just wander into a non-public area?

Not being watched by parents probably helps

 

[Venture]

Apparently they're still using the same rabies test on animals that's been around since the 1960's. It's a damn shame no one's come up with a non-lethal alternative.

 

[Neverfade]

How do you just wander into a non-public area?

By not being supervised by a parent.

Nuke kids.

 

[Fugu]

Rabies prophylaxis is not a huge deal. These parents are not excellent people.

This is correct. That's why you should go to the doc after an animal bite anyway, even if you don't show symptoms. If you wait forever (read: more than 3 months) and GET full-blown rabies, death rate approaches 100%. Prophylaxis is nearly 100% effective, though.

But killing the wolf because you don't want your kid to get a little shot (it's like a flu shot) is just stupid.

Also I'm gonna speculate ZOO ANIMALS are way less likely to actually have rabies since they're less exposed to rabies-carriers AND under constant vet supervision.

"Approaches" is an understatement. Symptomatic rabies is basically always fatal.

 

[afreaknamedpete]

The outcome was the parents' fault, and they should have been made to act accordingly.

It's not like you can make the parents take a rabies shot. It's the kid that has to deal with injections and medical follow up appointments.

There's really two parties who are innocent here, the kid who is excused by not really knowing better, and the wolf who is excused by being a wolf. I can sympathize with the parents for putting the child's pain above the life of a wolf.

 

[evil solrac v3.0]

That's right, in the scenario post-exposure prophylaxis would be administered. Which, by the way, is an ongoing process of shots and tests that lasts months. Hardly 'a harmless little shot.' I don't blame anyone for not wanting to do it until it's proven the animal actually had rabies. Unfortunately using brain tissue is the only way to do that.

it's not that bad a procedure and the parents should have been forced to make their little shit take the shots. it makes no sense that wolf would have rabies. none. they (I assume) have vets there who monitor these poor animals and I would think they would have noticed if a wolf had rabies or not.

I don't know about zoos wherever you are or this is, but I'd expect to allow a child to wander around a bit by themself without getting bitten by a vicious animal. Was there zero security in this place? How do you just wander into a non-public area?

even when caged animals can't be protected from the most vicious and evil animal of them all.

 

[evil solrac v3.0]

It's not like you can make the parents take a rabies shot. It's the kid that has to deal with injections and medical follow up appointments.

There's really two parties who are innocent here, the kid who is excused by not really knowing better, and the wolf who is excused by being a wolf. I can sympathize with the parents for putting the child's pain above the life of a wolf.

I can't. if my kid did something dumb like that I would make him take the shot as punishment and as a lesson. these are obviously selfish, shitty parents.

 

[entremet]

Yeah, screw those parents.

Calling the situation unfortunate and the first of its kind in at least six years, Maurer said the state Division of Public Health mandated authorities kill the animal after the child's parents said they did not want to put their child through rabies shots. A brain sample from the wolf then was sent to Madison for a rabies test, which came back negative.

"There's no other way to test for rabies," Maurer said.

Therefore, when a wild animal bites someone, it "makes sense" to euthanize the animal, and doing so is common practice in such cases, Miller said.

Sucks what happened to the wolf and the parents were extremely negligent, but I thought rabies shots were very invasive and painful.

Makes sense the parent would forgo them.

Still sucks

 

[TheOohChild]

I wouldn't want my little person going through the shots either. I would be OK with having some wolf blood on my hands.

 

[Massive Duck. C.M.]

Actually, how likely is it that a zoo wolf has rabies?

 

[Fugu]

I wouldn't want my little person going through the shots either. I would be OK with having some wolf blood on my hands.

Are you fucking kidding me? You would sign off to kill an animal because your kid did something wrong just to spare them from some needles, which would surely end up being a drop in a bucket compared to how many needles they'd get in their life?

That's downright ridiculous.

 

[PseudoKirby]

I wouldn't want my little person going through the shots either. I would be OK with having some wolf blood on my hands.

Shots are a regular thing for children, stop being weird.

 

[Wanderer5]

Are these shots really that bad compare to shots that the kid is going to have to take anyway?

Horrible the wolf got the chopping block.:/

 

[afreaknamedpete]

AFAIK there is another option for rabies post-exposure prophylaxis if the bite is very unlikely to cause rabies, which is to watch the animal for 10 days and see if it becomes symptomatic. I suppose in this case public health just wanted to be really safe, since I'm not sure if you can vaccinate wolves against rabies.

 

[malfcn]

Parents want to be parents and put down the wolf, but not keep the kid out of places they shouldn't go.

 

[cdyhybrid]

Actually, how likely is it that a zoo wolf has rabies?

Probably pretty unlikely but liability blah blah blah

 

[boiled goose]

Zoo is also at fault. Engineering controls are best. Kid should not have been abLe to make it there.

 

[Dan]

The wolf is the only creature in this whole story not being stupid, so of course it's killed.

There's no good reason to kill a zoo animal solely to check whether or not a person should get rabies shots.