Buzz
Many individuals harbor dreams of owning wild and exotic pets, with some going to extreme lengths to turn their fantasy into reality. While some of these relationships turn out fine, others tragically spiral out of control, resulting in these animals turning against their owners, even killing and devouring them. In contrast, some people opt for more common domestic animals, yet still meet the same grim fate. Here are ten instances where animals mauled their owners to death:
10. Andre Lumboga Was Killed and Consumed by His Own Dogs
Andre Lumboga, an Indonesian man, left his seven dogs without food or water for two weeks while he went on vacation. Upon his return, the ravenous dogs attacked him, killed him, and devoured him. His death might have remained undiscovered if a vigilant neighborhood guard hadn't noticed luggage outside his home, with no sign of the man.
The guard, noticing a foul odor coming from the house, alerted the authorities. Upon investigation, the man's skull was found in the kitchen, and his body was discovered in front of his house. The assailants were his seven dogs, who had also killed and eaten two other dogs during the two weeks he was away. Ironically, Lumboga hailed from Sulawesi, an island in northern Indonesia, where dogs are commonly included in the local diet.
9. Michal Prasek Was Killed by His Own Lion
Michal Prasek, a man from the Czech Republic, kept a lion and a lioness in his backyard for breeding purposes. The animals were housed in homemade enclosures. His unusual pet choice raised concerns among local residents and authorities, but no one intervened, possibly due to fear of the wild creatures he kept.
Prasek was denied permission to build the enclosures for the animals and was fined for illegal breeding. However, his dispute with authorities reached an impasse when he refused to allow anyone on his property. Ultimately, Michal Prasek was mauled to death by the lion, which led to the authorities shooting both of the wild animals.
8. Oregon Farmer Was Devoured by His Pigs
Terry Vance Garner, a farmer from Coos County, Oregon, went out to feed his pigs one day but never returned. Several hours later, a family member discovered his dentures and body parts in the hog pen. Most of his remains had already been consumed by the pigs by the time he was found.
Garner, a Vietnam War veteran who struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder, found solace in farm life. He devoted himself to raising various animals, including birds. Ironically, his compassion for these animals might have inadvertently led to his tragic death at their hands.
A year before being fatally attacked by his hogs, Garner was bitten by a large sow after accidentally stepping on a piglet. Although he initially planned to kill the sow in retaliation, he later decided to spare its life. Ultimately, it was the very animals he cared for deeply that led to his demise.
7. Cynthia Lee Gamble Killed by Her Own Tiger
Cynthia Lee Gamble, from Danforth Township, Pine County, Minnesota, was a passionate wildlife lover who worked on wildlife documentaries and had a hand in television and film. She raised, trained, and filmed various wild animals such as wolves, wolverines, coyotes, and foxes. She had a special interest in tigers and had kept them on her property for over ten years without any issues.
Despite her experience with wild cats, Cynthia could not avoid a tragic end. On the day of her death, while cleaning a Bengal tiger’s cage, she accidentally left one of the doors open, unknowingly exposing herself to an attack. The tiger seized the opportunity and mauled her to death.
6. Al Abell Killed by His Pet Lion
Much like the previous case, a lapse in memory while cleaning the cage of a wild animal led to the tragic death of Al Abell. Typically, Al Abell enjoyed cleaning his pet lion's cage, but he had never done so alone. On that fateful day, while working alone at his farm in Illinois, he moved the pet lion from its main cage to the shift pen to clean the main enclosure. Unfortunately, he left the gate open between the two areas, and the lion immediately attacked, mauling him to death. Al and his wife had raised Simba, a 5-year-old African Barbary lion, from a cub.
On the day of the incident, Kathie Abell went out for errands. Upon her return, she found that her husband was missing and the lion had escaped its enclosure, pacing restlessly. The other animals on the farm were visibly agitated, adding to her fear. In panic, she called the sheriff. When authorities arrived, they were forced to shoot and kill Simba to prevent it from escaping and causing more damage.
5. East Texas Man Killed by His Pet Deer
Gerald Rushton, an East Texas man who raised exotic deer, entered the pen to feed one of them, but the animal turned aggressive and attacked him. Rushton was fatally mauled in his own backyard. Family members who witnessed the attack called authorities, but despite their efforts, Rushton succumbed to blood loss after being impaled by the deer's antlers.
The man kept the deer illegally, as authorities do not issue permits for people to own red stag deer due to the animal's extremely wild nature. On the day of Rushton's death, the responding deputies killed the deer.
4. Woman Killed by Her Pet Wolf-Dogs
Sandra L. Piovesan, a Salem Township woman, had a passion for breeding wolf-dogs. She kept a pack of nine within a pen on her property. One day, she entered the pen and was attacked by the animals, who killed her and even partially consumed her. Piovesan's daughter became concerned when her mother failed to appear for a 10:00 am meeting on Monday.
Piovesan's daughter called her father, who went to Sandra's property and found her lifeless body in the wolf-dogs' pen. She had bled to death after being clawed, bitten, and dragged into the enclosure by the animals. Most of the wolf-dogs weighed between 70 to 100 pounds (31.7 to 45.4 kilograms), and some were between 7 to 8 years old. A wildlife expert suggested that the animals had become agitated and aggressive due to the time of year.
3. International Footballer Mauled to Death by a Pack of Pet Dogs
Philemon Mulala, a 60-year-old retired Zambian international footballer, had raised three puppies that grew into fully grown dogs. Little did he know that the dogs he cared for would one day turn on him. On the day of the tragic incident, Mulala's wife heard the dogs barking in the backyard but didn't think much of it, as they often barked at pedestrians and passing vehicles on their busy street.
However, when she couldn't find her husband inside the house, she went to check the backyard. There, she found Mulala lying motionless on the ground. She was horrified to discover that the three dogs they had raised and loved had killed him. The dogs were later removed from the property by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
2. Man Killed by His Own 'Watch' Goat
In Cherokee County, Georgia, 77-year-old Carl Hulsey, a retired poultry worker, took an unconventional approach to securing his farmland by training a goat to serve as a guard animal. Unfortunately, his efforts took a deadly turn. Hulsey frequently beat the goat in an attempt to make it aggressive enough to protect his crops. Instead, the goat turned on him.
One day, the goat butted Hulsey twice, knocking him to his knees. As he tried to escape, scrambling onto the porch, the goat charged again, sending him falling off the porch to his death. The coroner determined that Hulsey died from blunt trauma to the abdominal area.
1. Temperamental Pet Bull Ends in Tragedy for Its Owner
On a fateful Saturday in Burks County, Pennsylvania, Ricky Weinhold was attacked by a 1-ton bull he had raised as a pet on a farm he rented in Wernersville, approximately 60 miles (97 kilometers) northwest of Philadelphia. Ironically, Weinhold had been advised by the property owners to part with the bull due to its ‘temperamental’ nature. They warned that the animal was ill-tempered and unpredictable.
Weinhold owned about 10 cattle, all of which he had raised as pets. The year before the tragic event, he had already been attacked and injured by the same bull, breaking several ribs. Despite this, he failed to recognize it as a warning sign. Although Weinhold had a deep affection for his animals, the bull’s feelings were far from reciprocated, as it ultimately became the cause of his death.
