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When a panther attacks, just fight back!
Source: Agencies |
December 22, 2010, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
IF attacked by an endangered Florida panther, stand tall and fight back - that's the advice wildlife officials are giving after a series of panther attacks on domestic animals.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said yesterday that panthers, which are a protected species, had killed several goats and a pig on at least six occasions since the beginning of December.
If you encounter a panther, the FWC recommends you avoid crouching or bending down; stand tall and face the animal; make eye contact; do whatever you can to appear larger; and fight back if attacked.
"We're trying to advise the public to be the dominant person ... that's the bottom line," said Gabriella Ferraro, a spokeswoman for the FWC.
For the more faint-hearted who may not relish the idea of grappling with a Florida panther - full-grown males can stand up to 70 centimeters high at the shoulder and weigh up to 72 kilograms - the FWC gives some more reassuring information on its website: "Panthers eat deer, not people. Panthers are shy and avoid people."
Pets and farm animals are not so lucky, however, and the FWC recommends keeping livestock such as chickens, goats and hogs in enclosed structures at night.
Cats and small dogs should be kept indoors especially at night, it adds.
Florida panthers have been listed as endangered since 1967.
The population declined to about 30 cats by the early 1980s but has recovered to at least 100 panthers today.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said yesterday that panthers, which are a protected species, had killed several goats and a pig on at least six occasions since the beginning of December.
If you encounter a panther, the FWC recommends you avoid crouching or bending down; stand tall and face the animal; make eye contact; do whatever you can to appear larger; and fight back if attacked.
"We're trying to advise the public to be the dominant person ... that's the bottom line," said Gabriella Ferraro, a spokeswoman for the FWC.
For the more faint-hearted who may not relish the idea of grappling with a Florida panther - full-grown males can stand up to 70 centimeters high at the shoulder and weigh up to 72 kilograms - the FWC gives some more reassuring information on its website: "Panthers eat deer, not people. Panthers are shy and avoid people."
Pets and farm animals are not so lucky, however, and the FWC recommends keeping livestock such as chickens, goats and hogs in enclosed structures at night.
Cats and small dogs should be kept indoors especially at night, it adds.
Florida panthers have been listed as endangered since 1967.
The population declined to about 30 cats by the early 1980s but has recovered to at least 100 panthers today.
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