On November 16, 2008, the Luray Zoo experienced its first incident involving an animal injuring an employee.  While the employee was petting the tiger "Star", the animal grabbed the employee's hand in a playful manner, which turned into a tug-of-war.  Unfortunately, a serious injury resulted from this encounter.  Both the employee and the tiger are doing fine.

What is remarkable is that Star did NOT intend to hurt the employee. The injury was a result of "pulling" action during the encounter, and NOT  Star biting in an aggressive
manner.

We care deeply for our animals
and our employees.  Interaction
with our animals is beneficial to
their mental well-being, but we
don't encourage our employees
to pet or handle certain animals.


We emphasize the importance of
staying alert when working with
or handling any animal to avoid
accidents.

 

Website and all photographs copyrighted by Jennifer Westhoff