Exotic animals escape Ohio preserve

Police killed nearly 50 exotic animals on Wednesday that were released from their preserve by their owner. The incident forced area residents to stay indoors and officials to close schools in the area.

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Oct. 20, 2011

This photo provided by the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium shows one of three leopards that were captured by authorities on Wednesday, a day after their owner released dozens of wild animals and then allegedly killed himself near Zanesville, Ohio. Sheriff's deputies shot and killed 48 of the animals, including 18 rare Bengal tigers, 17 lions, six black bears, two grizzly bears, a baboon, a wolf and three mountain lions. Six of the released animals — three leopards, a bear and two monkeys — were captured and taken to the Columbus Zoo.

Grahm Jones / AP

Oct. 19, 2011

A bear that was captured by authorities sits in an enclosure at the Columbus Zoo.

Grahm S. Jones / AP

Oct. 19, 2011

One of two macaques that were captured by authorities sits in captivity at the Columbus Zoo. The animal is one of six that were spared from Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz’s shoot-to-kill order.

Grahm S. Jones / AP

Oct. 19, 2011

A black leopard, one of three leopards that were captured by authorities Wednesday, sits in an enclosure at the Columbus Zoo.

Grahm S. Jones / AP

Oct. 19, 2011

Columbus Zoo director emeritus Jack Hanna, right, and Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz speak during a news conference in Zanesville, Ohio. Sheriff's deputies shot nearly 50 wild animals after the owner of an exotic animal park threw their cages open and allegedly committed suicide in what appeared to be one last act of spite against his neighbors and police.

Doral Chenoweth III / AP

Oct. 19, 2011

Carcasses lay on the ground at the Muskingum County Animal Farm in Zanesville, Ohio. Terry Thompson, the owner of the animals, died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound and also had a bite wound on his head that appeared to have come from a large cat, such as a Bengal tiger, county Sheriff Matt Lutz said Thursday morning.

/ AP

Oct. 20, 2011

A stuffed animal with a sympathy card attached hangs from the locked gate at the Muskingum County Animal Farm.

Mike Munden / AP

Oct. 19, 2011

Investigators walk around a barn with carcasses on the ground at the Muskingum County Animal Farm in Zanesville, Ohio. Police with assault rifles stalked a mountain lion, grizzly bear and monkey still on the loose after authorities said their owner apparently freed dozens of wild animals and then killed himself.

Tony Dejak / AP

Oct. 19, 2011

The Muskingum County Animal Farm in Zanesville, Ohio, with the house on the right. The barn on the left and cages for other animals are between the house and the barn.

Tony Dejak / AP

Oct. 19, 2011

A barn stands on the property from where exotic animals escaped a wildlife preserve in Zanesville, Ohio. Muskingum County Animal Farm owner Terry Thompson was found dead Tuesday after deputies received calls reporting wild animals on the loose west of Zanesville. Authorities suspect that Thompson set the animals loose and then took his own life.

Jay LaPrete / Getty Images

August 2008

In this file photo, Terry Thompson stands with some of his award-winning Percheron horses on his farm west of Zanesville, Ohio. Authorities said Thompson, a game-preserve owner, apparently freed dozens of wild animals, including tigers and grizzly bears, and then killed himself.

Chris Crook / AP

Oct. 19, 2011

A truck and trailer owned by the The Wilds, a wildlife conservation center, leaves the property where exotic animals escaped in Zanesville, Ohio.

Jay LaPrete / Getty Images

Oct. 19, 2011

A sign posted on Interstate 70 warns drivers that exotic animals — including cougars, lions, camels, tigers and grizzly bears — are on the loose in the area around Zanesville, Ohio. Dozens of large, exotic animals were hunted down and shot, after their owner opened their cages at his Ohio farm and then committed suicide, officials said Wednesday.

Matt Sullivan / Reuters

Oct. 18, 2011

A dead lion lays by the fence on Terry Thompson's farm near Zanesville, Ohio. Police killed dozens of animals Tuesday that escaped from a wild-animal preserve, where the owner's body later was found. Warning that more animals still were on the loose, officials expected up to four school districts to cancel classes as the remaining bears, large cats and other beasts from the Muskingum County Animal Farm were hunted down.

Dustin Burton and Heather Ellers / AP

Oct. 18, 2011

Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz speaks to the media about exotic animals loose in the area in Zanesville, Ohio. Lutz issued a controversial shoot-to-kill order on the animals, which he described as “mature, very big, aggressive.”

Trevor Jones / AP

Oct. 18, 2011

Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz speaks to individuals from the Wilds — a wildlife conservation center in Cumberland, Ohio — and the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium about exotic animals loose in the area. An estimated 48 animals escaped the property of Terry Thompson in Zanesville, Ohio. Thompson was found dead outside his home.

Trevor Jones / AP

Oct. 18, 2011

Vehicles from the Columbus Zoo and the Falls Township Fire Department sit parked in the staging area for the search for exotic animals loose in Zanesville, Ohio.

Trevor Jones / AP

Oct. 19, 2011

A road closed sign leading into the Muskingum County Animal Farm is shown in Zanesville, Ohio. Police with assault rifles stalked a mountain lion, grizzly bear and monkey still on the loose after authorities said their owner allegedly freed dozens of wild animals and then killed himself.

Matt Sullivan / Reuters

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