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.