wayodd.com
Joined: Sep 2006
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A lion and tiger escaping were enough, so Florida officials didn't wait for a bear to break free before slapping the owner of McCarthy's Wildlife Sanctuary with a citation.

Mark McCarthy on Wednesday reportedly said that he didn't think he should have been cited.

Twenty-two of the 90 permanent wild animals housed at the sanctuary are big cats. And sometime after 11 p.m. on Aug. 19 Lola, a Bengal tiger, and Aslan, a lion, escaped their 20-by-30-foot cage.

Aslan made it back to his cage on his own soon after and Lola was found hiding in the brush of the five-acre sanctuary, which is enclosed by an eight-foot high fence. So owner Mark McCarthy argued that the public was never endangered.

However, Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission authorities disagreed. After conducting an investigation and inspecting the property, they have decided to cite him for keeping animals in an unsafe manner.

McCarthy faces a maximum penalty of 60 days in jail and a $500 fine after Florida Fish & Wildlife found that gate hinges were improperly installed, which allowed the two cats to push their gates open and escape.

McCarthy has operated the facility for 18 years and holds a wildlife rehabilitation permit.

anonymous

My children love marc mccarthy's wildlife shows and he does alot of good for local wildlife leave the poor guy alone you people don't have anything better to do than pick on eveyone and everything the guy has live out in the acerage for 18 yrs. and this is the first I've heard of a problem that's a good track record if you ask me!
Nancy

anonymous

Mr. McCarthy has dedicated his life to helping animals too bad that everyone else uses his misfortune as a publicity stunt to advertize there websites. Shame on all of you!
Good luck Mr. McCarthy my kid love your educational shows