# Gorilla shot to save young boy **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 30, 2016, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046 "2016-05-30T01:13:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Pylesos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc348/32.png) [@Pylesos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pylesos)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/81 "2016-05-30T16:37:11Z")
Is it reasonable for zoos to expect parents to control their children? What legal action could zoo take against the parents who fail to do so? ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/82 "2016-05-30T16:47:14Z")
> [@Pylesos](#): > > “Mommy is right here!”… “Thoughts and prayers!” > Where is dad in all of this? Why is he not in enclosure, protecting his kid? Is he at home, taking a break from his fat cunty wife and annoying kid? Do ape loves not matter? There’s 7 billions humans in the world and a few thousands of lowland gorillas, yet the gorilla gets shot to save the stupid kid, who’ll grow up and amount to nothing? > Send the “parents” the bill for a new gorilla, at the very least… And if there’s a gorilla shortage, where is the zoo going to get a new one? Capture It from the wild? Transfer from another zoo? Put a male and a female together and let them make hot monkey love? Sale at Peeble’s pet store? I’m sure zoos have agreements to control animal populations so as not to overburden resources. It could take the zoo years to replace that gorilla. ---
**Author:** ![Pylesos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc348/32.png) [@Pylesos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pylesos)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/83 "2016-05-30T16:50:31Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > It could take the zoo years to replace that gorilla. Exactly. Whatever costs are incurred in replacing the gorilla should be paid by the parents, until the zoo is fully reimbursed. If they’re unable to repay it in full, the kid should start making the payments upon reaching maturity. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/84 "2016-05-30T16:56:14Z")
> [@Pylesos](#): > > Exactly. Whatever costs are incurred in replacing the gorilla should be paid by the parents, until the zoo is fully reimbursed. If they’re unable to repay it in full, the kid should start making the payments upon reaching maturity. Debts can’t be passed down generations. The kid was way too young to understand the consequences of what he was doing. ---
**Author:** ![Pylesos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc348/32.png) [@Pylesos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pylesos)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/85 "2016-05-30T17:01:49Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Debts can’t be passed down generations. The kid was way too young to understand the consequences of what he was doing. An exception should be made in this case. An endangered great ape, a close relative of human species, was killed. There must be consequences for parents now, and, if they’re unable to bear them fully, for the kid later. ---
**Author:** ![MandaJo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@MandaJo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MandaJo)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/86 "2016-05-30T17:02:33Z")
Y’all realize that the devil is entirely in the details? I mean, if it comes out that the kid squirmed through a corner where several other pre-schoolers had almost gotten through before, to the point that the zoo staff referred to the spot at the “toddler trap”, well, then that would change things. On the other hand, if there’s security footage of the mom on her phone while the kid laboriously drags a bench over, makes several aborted attempts to climb a tree, and then finally hauls his still-distracted mom over to use her back as a brace so that he can lever himself into the tree and over a fence, that’s a different story. The truth is probably somewhere in between those extremes, but in the absence of any actual information, it seems insane to speak with any sort of confidence about who was at fault here. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/87 "2016-05-30T17:09:22Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > And what would the gorilla have amounted to? You think he would have found the cure for cancer? Written the Great American Novel? Perhaps The Apes of Wrath. mmm ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/88 "2016-05-30T17:09:45Z")
> [@Pylesos](#): > > An exception should be made in this case. An endangered great ape, a close relative of human species, was killed. There must be consequences for parents now, and, if they’re unable to bear them fully, for the kid later. Why the kid? Do you really think the kid understands what he did? ---
**Author:** ![Pylesos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc348/32.png) [@Pylesos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pylesos)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/89 "2016-05-30T17:11:18Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Why the kid? Do you really think the kid understands what he did? Well, someone should pay for it. Who do you suggest it be? ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/90 "2016-05-30T17:14:33Z")
> [@Pylesos](#): > > The (dead) gorilla already amounted to more than the kid ever will–to wit, it didn’t venture into human habitats and hasn’t caused any human deaths. > The kid should have been left in the enclosure–Tarzan was raised by the gorillas and turned out ok, which is more than can be said here. > [@Pylesos](#): > > The kid already killed one gorilla, the probability of him saving any is infinitesimal. > There’s no excuse for a magnificent close relative of human species to lose his life because these parents just came back from Jerry Springer taping a show about bad parenting. > [@Peremensoe](#): > > That’s what happened in Pittsburgh, after a child was killed by wild dogs in 2012. The mother had _lifted him over the railing for a better view, and then let him slip._ You and your posts are disgusting. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/91 "2016-05-30T17:17:18Z")
> [@Pylesos](#): > > Well, someone should pay for it. Who do you suggest it be? The parents, I have no problem with. Do you really want to be held responsible for every stupid decision your parents made? ---
**Author:** ![Pylesos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc348/32.png) [@Pylesos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pylesos)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/92 "2016-05-30T17:22:06Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > The parents, I have no problem with. Do you really want to be held responsible for every stupid decision your parents made? Well, that’s not solving the problem. Who should reimburse the zoo costs, if the parents are unable to do so fully? You? Me? Taxpayers? Obviously not. Let the kid pay once he reaches maturity and hope that’ll imprint on him the necessity of controling his own kids. How else would the cycle of stupidity that runs in the family be broken? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/93 "2016-05-30T17:24:01Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > And what would the gorilla have amounted to? You think he would have found the cure for cancer? Written the Great American Novel? At least the gorilla was a sure fire ticket box draw. The kid was obviously and an aspiring B&E criminal. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Lowry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Sam\_Lowry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Lowry)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/94 "2016-05-30T17:24:17Z")
> [@MandaJo](#): > > Y’all realize that the devil is entirely in the details? I mean, if it comes out that the kid squirmed through a corner where several other pre-schoolers had almost gotten through before, to the point that the zoo staff referred to the spot at the “toddler trap”, well, then that would change things. On the other hand, if there’s security footage of the mom on her phone while the kid laboriously drags a bench over, makes several aborted attempts to climb a tree, and then finally hauls his still-distracted mom over to use her back as a brace so that he can lever himself into the tree and over a fence, that’s a different story. > > The truth is probably somewhere in between those extremes, but in the absence of any actual information, it seems insane to speak with any sort of confidence about who was at fault here. I agree with this, I would like to hear more about how secure it was before I say who’s mostly at fault. I would guess it’s probably closer to the first scenario, because I’d think that if a small child was trying to drag benches around and climb trees to get in, some other parent would notice and yell or do something, but I don’t know. Enclosures should be made very difficult to get into, but there’s no way to make them 100% secure, even from a small determined child, unless zoos were made prohibitively expensive. You can add all sorts of security measures, but there’s still the swiss cheese model where that one instance where everything lines up and things go wrong. But security should be so that a kid getting in is a one in a million likelihood, not like a one in one hundred chance or something like that. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/95 "2016-05-30T17:26:54Z")
> [@Pylesos](#): > > Well, that’s not solving the problem. Who should reimburse the zoo costs, if the parents are unable to do so fully? > You? Me? Taxpayers? Obviously not. Let the kid pay once he reaches maturity and hope that’ll imprint on him the necessity of controling his own kids. **How else would the cycle of stupidity that runs in the family be broken?** How about sterilizing him so he can’t reproduce. And what if he can’t pay? Does it now be put on his kids? There’s also the interest to consider. How many generations will be held accountable? ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/96 "2016-05-30T17:52:42Z")
> [@Pylesos](#): > > Well, that’s not solving the problem. Who should reimburse the zoo costs, if the parents are unable to do so fully? > You? Me? Taxpayers? Obviously not. ? The insurance company will reimburse the zoo. That’s what insurance is for. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/97 "2016-05-30T18:11:40Z")
> [@Baker](#): > > You and your posts are disgusting. Excuse me? Please do not conflate my posts with **Pylesos** ’. Of the ones you quoted, I don’t like his either, and mine was merely factual. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/98 "2016-05-30T18:38:38Z")
> [@Whiskey\_Dickens](#): > > The Bananas for Kids Accord negotiations broke down after hours of heated debate I guess. Presumably the life of the child was paramount. Again, the zoo’s fault for not bring in Koko The Gorilla as the negotiator. > [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](#): > > It’s most likely the zoo’s fault and the parents will probably sue and win. Parents have a reasonable expectation that the zoo would make certain that there’s no way any child would have a way to get into the gorilla pen. If the parent did something to circumvent the safety precautions, that’s a whole different matter. But I suspect that we would have heard about that by now. I think you’re right. AFACT, the kid was able, somehow, to get around the barrier(s) and enter the enclosure. And by being “right” I mean more likely how a lawsuit would end up. ---
**Author:** ![StanielMarsh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c2a13f/32.png) [@StanielMarsh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StanielMarsh)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/99 "2016-05-30T19:02:26Z")
When it was revealed that the kid is African-American, the social mobs are even less sympathetic it seems! The mother, Michelle Greggs, has released a statement on facebook. Some commenters suggested that SHE was the real gorilla and her son an ape-like cretin ---
**Author:** ![Urbanredneck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ea5d25/32.png) [@Urbanredneck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urbanredneck)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2016, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046/100 "2016-05-30T19:10:54Z")
I have a friend who works at the Kansas City zoo and he is on the shooter team. They actually are trained to shoot and kill all the dangerous animals. for example on an elephant they aim for an area of the leg. I dont think you can make enclosures safe enough to stop every stupid act. for example he said people are always jumping over the fence surrounding the lion and tiger cages to get up close. close enough where the tiger just has to reach their paws thru and get them. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gorilla-shot-to-save-young-boy/756046.md?page=6)