October 6, 2003
Tiger, Tiger
If you have ever complained about how tiny your NYC apartment is, think about the poor, poor 400 pound tiger cooped up in a Harlem apartment building. Police removed the 400 Bengal-Siberian tiger, Ming, from the apartment of Antoine Yates yesterday, calling in a police officer who needed to be rappelled down the building, in order to shoot the tiger with a tranquilizer gun. Also found in the apartment: A caiman alligator named Al. Officer Martin Duffy said the tiger charged at him, breaking the glass of the window: "I have to say I got a little nervous – I'm not going to lie." But he successfully darted Ming, who was later carried out by many people, from places like the NYPD, Bronx Zoo, Nassau County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty and Animals and the Center for Animal Care and Control.
Yates' animals were discovered due to his hospital visit for treatment after the tiger mauled him (Yates was trying to protect a kitten from Ming). Apaprently, doctors and nurses can tell that tiger-sized bites are not from a pit bull, as Yates claimed. Yates has been arrested in Philadelphia (where he fled after his menagerie was discovered), under charges of reckless endangerment.
Some facts:
- A neighbor complained to the Housing Authority about "tiger urine" leaking from Yates' apartment; the HA knew of the complaint, but claimed not to know it was from a tiger. [Daily News]
- A second tiger, some bear cubs, two Rottweilers, rabbits and a tarantula also lived there at the time. [DN]
- Ming was fed "a couple of chickens"
- Officials are trying to figure out how Yates got a tiger cub in the first place. [Times]
- Yates loves animals; brother Aaron: "He raised a healthy tiger. They should find him a job with animals."
- Mayor Bloomberg: "Tigers are dangerous animals."
- Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly: "This is clearly a first. This is an 'Only in New York' story."
- Neighbor:"I think it's crazy for you to have something like that. This is not upstate; it's not a zoo.” [NY1]
- Yates: "I am trying to create a Garden of Eden, something this world lacks." [NY Post]
Ming is going to Noah's Lost Ark in Berlin Center, Ohio, an "exotic animal refuge." His friend, Al, will be sent to different refuge equipped for reptiles.
The Tyger by William Blake.
Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile lived on East 88th Street.
Babar did well in the city, but returned to the forest.
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an 'only in new york' story? this sort of thing happens in detroit all the time...
I have to say that is a pretty healthy, nice looking tiger there, as compared with most zoo-animals I have seen which are generally kinda downtrodden and un-tigery-seeming.
Poor little latch-key cub. And I feel guilty leaving my 40-lb. dog in my 1/2 acre backyard while I'm at work.
how does one tell the difference between tiger urine and any other urine???
what a cutie though
well, it seems that the breed of the pitbull is truly the maligned character in this twisty little story! pitbulls and bears always get the bad rap, when it seems that tigers are biting everyone these days...
tho i might bite everyone, too, if i was making my way toward extinction.
how does one tell the difference between tiger urine and any other urine???
The taste.
So...so...what happened to the kitten?
Antoine Yates, the man bitten by his Siberian-Bengal mix, received the tiger from Kenneth and Nancy Kraft, owners of BEARCAT Hollow. Yates told reporters he raised the tiger from a cub and was trying to create a "Garden of Eden."
Last Tuesday, the Krafts were indicted in Federal Court for the alleged illegal purchase of another siberian tiger named "Como."
That tiger was later killed after it bit a young girl. Documents also reveal that Yates got an African Lion cub from the Krafts, but it wasn't in the apartment when officials confiscated the tiger along with a 5-foot alligator.
http://wcco.com/localnews/local_story_280182942.html
anyone wonder where that lion cub went?
"it's crazy for you to have something like that. This is not upstate; it's not a zoo."
Ahh, why many of us upstaters (Which always struck me as odd, as over 90% of the land of NYS is considered UPstate. Personally, as NYC hangs below, I'd say they are DOWNstate) cannot stand NYCers.
I called Mr. Guart at the NY Post and he threatened me. He is the Post reporter who bought the lion cub Boomerang. It seems that the Daily New called him as well and got the same answer as I did. First he answered my call, but then when I started to ask him further questions about the cub he got defensive and nasty and threatened me. It seems that Mr. Guart thinks the NY Daily News is running their articles because ot a publicity stunt for Noah's Ark to get funds. Shambala, would have never taken the cub at such a young age and Mr. Guart could not transport an wild animal across state lines from Ohio to California, that is a federal offense.
So, if Mr. Guart had not started this "Three Ring Circus" in the first place trying to make point none of this would have happened. Now he does not want to deal with the repercussions of his actions and makes threats and says dont call this number again. Shame on Mr. Guart!
What happend to Al, the 5 foot alligator???
this i sa cool sit look and print
I love antione and respect his intentions i personally believe he did better with the animals than some parents with their kids and if most showed the love to their childrens as antione shown these animals the world would be a better place to live. tracey tresvant