Horrific moment zookeeper is mauled to death while petting a Bengal tiger
Keeper at a private zoo was mauled by tiger after putting arm through fence. José de Jesús, 23, later died from a suspected heart attack, doctors said
A keeper at a private zoo has died after being mauled by a tiger as he petted it during feeding time.
José de Jesús, 23, was bitten on his right hand by the Bengal tiger caged in Peribán, Michoacán in west Mexico on Monday afternoon, before dying later hours later from a suspected heart attack, doctors said.
Horrific footage shows the zookeeper telling the big cat to come to him as he stands behind a chain link fence with an outstretched hand.
But as he starts to stroke the tiger’s neck, the animal suddenly sinks its teeth into his hand and pulls him towards the fence.
De Jesus screams in agony as the tiger yanks his hand with its ferociously strong jaw, clamped tight around him.
A second gruesome video shows a huge pool of blood on the ground after the keeper has been led away in an ambulance.
Emergency responders rushed De Jesus to hospital but he refused to allow medics to amputate his mauled hand, it is claimed.
A diabetic, his health worsened until he suffered from a massive heart attack and died, doctors said.
The grim video footage was reportedly released by the owner of the animals, who kept them in a private zoo.
The tiger’s owner reportedly told local media he had paid the medical bills for the man, adding that he had all the necessary permits to own the tiger.
Tiger keepers in Mexico require a permit from the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat) to keep the animals.
It was reported the owner also apparently keeps a lion and a crocodile at the same site.
Obviously the tiger was very hungry and angry.🙄