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Tiger attacks Roy of Siegfried and Roy - Page 2

post #31 of 44
10/9/03 at 11:05am
I'm just fortunate to have reached a point in my life where I have the time and resources to do some of the things I enjoy.

George
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post #32 of 44
10/9/03 at 10:14pm
I only heard about the attack fleetingly on the news two nights ago. Everyone around at the time went on a tirade as to why the tiger had to be put down. Needless to say I wasn't too impressed.

Then someone decided to play with Russell, my domesticated housecat, goading him to attack. A game which I normally intervene as I don't appreciate what it leads to but this time I let things be. I watched as Russell played and saw when he was overstimulated, so much so his tail puffed up. The next thing that happenned was that blood was drawn and I'm quite happy to announce that it wasn't feline.

The person was quite taken aback and was shocked. I simply stated that Russell was being a cat and that it was his nature. It's not something that can be ignored and that they were lucky that Russell wasn't a tiger.

Like Siegfried said, it was the tiger being a tiger. The tiger shouldn't be put down. There's a risk that's accepted when you work with any animal.


And George, I too, am jealous of you.
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post #33 of 44
10/10/03 at 12:58pm
Thread Starter 
Animal Experts Say Tiger Meant to Kill Roy
By ADAM GOLDMAN

LAS VEGAS (AP) - Animal experts on Thursday disputed a theory that a tiger accidentally mauled Roy Horn of the duo ``Siegfried & Roy,'' saying the 600-pound animal was going for the jugular.

``The cat wasn't trying to protect him,'' said Jonathan Kraft, who runs the Arizona-based nonprofit group Keepers of the Wild. ``That was a typical killing bite.''

``I admire the guys, I just think they are sending a wrong message,'' Kraft said. ``The message needs to be: These are wild animals.''

Horn's partner, Siegfried Fischbacher, said Wednesday in interviews on CNN and ABC that the animal had been trying to help Horn after the illusionist slipped during Friday's performance.

Fischbacher said he was backstage when the Royal White tiger named Montecore took hold of Horn's neck and dragged him offstage. Show workers set off fire extinguishers to distract the tiger, which then scurried to his cage.

Fischbacher said Horn muttered after the attack: ``Don't harm the cat.''

Louis Dorfman, a Dallas animal behaviorist, said Fischbacher's account of an accidental mauling was ``a beautiful story but it just doesn't wash.''

``Stress led to the bite,'' said Dorfman, who works with the International Exotic Feline Sanctuary in Texas. ``It was an outlet for his irritation. Roy got lucky.''

``Siegfried & Roy'' debuted in 1990 at The Mirage and earned the hotel-casino about $44 million in annual revenue. The show's 267 employees have been told to find new jobs.

Horn, 59, was injured before a sellout performance of 1,500.

He remained in critical condition Thursday and could not speak. Fischbacher confirmed to The Associated Press that Horn suffered a stroke after the attack but is now communicating through hand signals.

MGM Mirage spokesman Alan Feldman cautioned that the full story probably won't be known until Horn can talk.

Fischbacher hinted at a return to the stage if Horn recovers, saying the duo would ``take a different path, I'm sure, but ... the show is our life.''

The duo's manager, Bernie Yuman, told The Associated Press early Thursday that Siegfried would never continue to perform without his longtime partner. ``It is Siegfried and Roy and that's the way it began and that's the way it will always be,'' he said.

The cat remains quarantined at the casino. The federal Agriculture Department is investigating.
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post #34 of 44
10/11/03 at 10:48am
Doctor's are now giving Roy a 95% chance of recovering. There is a new CNN.com article
here that gives a lot of info I hadn't read before.
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post #35 of 44
10/11/03 at 11:09am
Quote:
Originally posted by valanhb
How many times do we see, "I was just petting my kitty cat and it bit/clawed me!" or "My kitty heard a loud noise/saw a strange cat/smelled a strange smell and all of a sudden became aggressive!" And these are just our little puddycats, but they can be scary when they all-of-a-sudden have a change in behaviour. Now make that cat 500 pounds.

The more I learn about ferals and how easily a domesticated housecat will revert back to it's wild nature, the more I think that we can't really "tame" these kitties that we love so much any more than you can a lion or tiger. The difference is that through "selective breeding" - meaning the more sociable cats over hundreds of years have flourished under the care of humans - and the sheer size difference, we are able to deal with the occasional wild streak from the little cats we keep in our homes.

Just a theory from someone who has been working on feral care banners all night.
That is what me and hubby think. just think if your cat was 2 times or more bigger then you. All the suden playful nips and pounces become attacks. Working with wild animals is a huge risk. They are wild and at any time something then just click and then become dangerous.
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post #36 of 44
10/17/03 at 9:56am
This is getting to me that this group or that group is saying that this is why tigers shouldn't be removed from their natural habitat. Well do they even realize that the population in the wild has decreased so much that there are more tigers in captivity in the US than wild in their natural habitat? Do they realize that people SHOOT them every day in their natural habitat? Do they want these animals to have no chance to survive? OK a lot of trainers may mistreat their animals, but not S & R. I think that they are bringing awareness and love for the animals, and that the incident was just an accident. The tiger does not hate roy, he probably loves him like our cats do. He was just scared and roy understands. I understand when roxy freaks out and claws me when the water comes on. I just think PETA needs to stop whining and goto asia or siberia or wherever and actually make a difference by stopping the poachers. Oh but no, it's much easier to just sit there and complain than to actually put themselves in danger. Whatever. Whine whine whine.
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post #37 of 44
10/18/03 at 11:35pm
any new updates on how he's doing?
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post #38 of 44
10/29/03 at 1:34pm
Today at work, one of my co-workers said she heard that Roy had to have part of his skull surgically removed, and my co-worker thought the tiger would probably be destroyed now. Has anyone else heard anything like this?

I thought Roy was only bitten on his neck.
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post #39 of 44
10/29/03 at 1:41pm
Thread Starter 
Roy had a stroke or something after he was attacked, and I think they took a portion of his skull to relieve pressure and that they will put it back when he improves. I haven't heard anything about the tiger being destroyed though.
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post #40 of 44
10/29/03 at 1:43pm
Part of his skull was surgically removed, so that pressure would not build up inside the skull and kill him. The removed piece was placed in a pouch in his abdomen, to keep it "alive", and will be replaced in the future.

As for the tiger, I haven't heard anything..
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post #41 of 44
10/29/03 at 2:15pm
My friend who lives in Vegas and works for the Mayor, sent me this link:


http://klastv.com/Global/story.asp?S...2&nav=168XIQs2
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post #42 of 44
10/29/03 at 5:22pm
Thanks guys, I think my co-worker may have been a little confused.
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post #43 of 44
12/3/03 at 6:54pm
Publicist: Magician Roy Horn may be home by month's end
Monday, December 1, 2003 Posted: 6:34 PM EST (2334 GMT)

LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- Illusionist Roy Horn, half of the famed Las Vegas duo Siegfried & Roy, may be released by month's end from the Los Angeles hospital where he's recovering from an attack by a white tiger, his publicist said Monday.

Horn, 59, remains in serious but stable condition at UCLA Medical Center, where he was transferred after initially being treated at the University Medical Center in Las Vegas, where he was rushed after the October 3 attack at The Mirage Hotel.

Dave Kirvin, the duo's publicist, told CNN that Horn is still undergoing treatment for his injuries, but his doctors are optimistic the animal trainer and performer will be well enough to continue recovering at home in Las Vegas within a couple of weeks.

"He's getting better every day," said Kirvin.

"He is moving now, little by little," Siegfried Fischbacher told NBC's "Today" show. "[He's] speaking a few words ... but this develops also every day."
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post #44 of 44
12/5/03 at 6:10am
The one thing that I can say for S & R is the fact that they have dedicated their lives to preserving the White Tiger! Not only do they have their own habitats here in North America but they are also active in conservation programs in South Africa and Germany.
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