The private zoo owner whose fiancée was killed in a tiger attack three years ago is the first person to be convicted under new legislation that makes it illegal to own certain exotic animals.
Conservation officers removed two African lion cubs from Kim Carlton's Bridge Lake, B.C., private zoo on Wednesday. Carlton pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled alien species without a permit, according to Environment Minister Barry Penner. He was fined $500 and conservation officers relocated the cubs to an undisclosed wildlife facility located outside B.C.
"It's very ironic the same person who in many ways triggered this legislation that now requires you to have permits and follow rules when you're handling dangerous animals, turns out to be the first person charged and convicted under this very legislation he helped create in the first place," Penner told CTV News.
Prior to the legislation, Carlton had kept three Bengal tigers in an enclosure on his Bridge Lake property, called the Siberian Magic Farm.
Carlton's fiancée Tanya Dumstrey-Soos, 32, was killed in 2007, when a tiger swatted at her legs, severing an artery. According to reports, Dumstrey-Soos was petting the tiger good night, as she did every night, when the tiger attacked and killer her, as a group of children watched.
With recommendations from the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and other animal welfare groups, the ministry quickly amended the B.C. Wildlife Act and developed regulations to make it illegal to own certain foreign animals. The new legislation was passed last year. Provinces usually only regulate wildlife species native to the province, such as deer and bears. Until the new province-wide legislation, the handling of exotic animals had fallen under a variety of local government regulations.
Penner was baffled that Carlton would persist in owning dangerous exotic animals, considering the tragic death of his fiancee and the controversy that followed.
"You would have thought (Carlton) would have followed the news that he himself helped generate when his girlfriend was killed by a tiger that was not properly kept in captivity," Penner said. "That tiger was able to reach between the bars and kill that woman, unfortunately. It was tragic. But somehow, Mr. Carlton didn't seem to pay attention to the public debate and our many announcements that we were moving to legislate in this area to give us authority for the first time to control what kind of dangerous alien animals the people in British Columbia are allowed to have."
Since the legislation came into effect, the ministry has approved 43 permit applications to possess a controlled species. The list includes 415 species.
"We don't simply hand out these permits like candy," Penner said. "You have to demonstrate that you have a solid plan to look after the animal and protect the public in case that animal gets loose."
