Two-Year-Old Child Injured after Falling into Cheetah Habitat

admin April 14, 2015

According to a recent news article form Fox News Insider, a two-year-old boy was injured when fell into the cheetah exhibit at a zoo in Cleveland. Witnesses and zoo officials say the boy’s mother was dangling him over the cheetah enclosure when she lost her grip on the child and dropped him approximately ten feet into the pit.

Once the boy hit the ground, his parents quickly entered the pit themselves and came to the aid of their son. Zoo officials said the cheetahs never came anywhere near the boy or his parents, and the animal caretakers were able to free the family from the Cheetah exhibit without any problems. The boy apparently suffered what zoo officials said was a minor leg injury as result of falling ten feet and was taken to a local hospital for evaluation and treatment. Many people questioned for this story and other media outlets have expressed amazement the boy was not attacked by the cheetah, though it is not known how likely it would have been for well-fed animals in captivity to act in an aggressive manner in any case.

Zoo officials have also stated how it is unfortunate that it appears the mother was dangling the child over the cheetah exhibit, according to multiple eyewitness reports, and, therefore, the zoo will be asking police and prosecutors to charge the parents with child endangerment. However, it should be noted, the family has not been charged with any crime in connection with this incident.