TAMA, Japan -- A Japanese zoo prepared for animal escapes by chasing a volunteer dressed in a lion costume.
Zoo staff set up makeshift fences to contain the wild beast. If it was not a drill, the animal would be shot with a tranquilizer and quickly moved back to its cage habitat.
The annual costumed rehearsal is a favorite spectacle for zoo goers. Last year, the zoo practiced capturing a man dressed as an escaped polar bear.
All of the drills have been successful, zoo officials said.
Yeah, "animal escape training." That's the ticket. If the news cameras hadn't shown up they'd still be beating off on that lion.
Somehow I don't think a person dressed in a suit is going to do the same things an actual lion would....
Maybe they're really training to keep furries out.
Possibly so! What about all the cosplay peeps??!!! lol!
or keep them in.
You'd be surprised how many actual lions barracade themselves into the aviary with several child hostages.
Astute.
I LOVE THIS!
I wish they did this at the San Francisco Zoo...I'd go more!
If they did this at the SF zoo, I'm pretty sure it wouldn't just be one furry running around, a few dozen (hundred?) would show up. Pure pandemonium!
Now that would be worth the price of admission.
Especially if they broke out the tranquiliser guns... or the real thing ;)
In other cat hunting news:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=519&ncid=519&e=26&u=/ap/20050307/ap_on_re_us/hunting_cats
http://bw2.lionhead.com/bw2/
I can see it now -- new event on MXC: dress in a big animal suit, try to escape "the zoo", which is some treacherous 30° incline with large styrofoam boulders rolled down as "zookeepers" try to throw netting over the contestants.
What will those wacky Japanese think of next.
I'm suprised you haven't posted this
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/03/06/ferocity_of_chimpanzee_attack_stuns_medics_leaves_questions/
I'm surprised I didn't too.
Whoops, must pay more attention. For some reason I though this was a different attack, although two in a week does seesm prety high. Even for those dirty rotten apes.
Stealthy zebra chamoflage.
Two years ago it was a leopard: http://www.livejournal.com/users/aquitone/2003/03/13/
The little kids who were at the zoo at that time were positively terrified by the "lion"...
speaking of zoo ... i really like the one in bremerhaven
I think they should focus on chasing chimps. And use body armor.
I understand the Japanese military has an contracted out their training exercises to Disney on Ice.
This is the best thing I've seen all month.