Lion Mauls Man At Kansas Refuge

Victim Suffered Deep Arm Wounds, Owner Beat Off Animal With A Pipe

(AP)  Authorities are investigating the mauling of a man by a lion at an animal refuge in western Kansas, but no charges are expected to be filed.

The lion's owner, Jeffrey Harsh, told authorities that the man was staying at a motel next to his refuge near Oakley and apparently made his way into an outer perimeter lion cage on Saturday.

When Harsh showed up to feed the animals that evening, he found the man with his arm over the top of a gate on the inner cage. Thomas County Sheriff Rod Taylor said a Barbary lion had grabbed the man's right arm.

Harsh reportedly beat the lion with a steel pipe so it would release the man, then drove the man to a hospital. The victim, Bradley Buchanan of Oakley, has since been transferred to a Denver hospital for more surgery and is expected to recover.

Taylor said photos of Buchanan's deep wounds appear to show that the lion reached the bone.

Harsh previously has faced legal problems for his ownership of exotic animals.

On Tuesday, the Thomas County prosecutor agreed to dismiss a misdemeanor case against Harsh, provided that he transfers three Barbary lions to the Detroit Zoo.

Zoo officials were expected to travel to Oakley within three months to make sure the animals are healthy before agreeing to take them.

Taylor said no charges are expected to be filed in Saturday's mauling, providing Harsh follows through on his promise to move the lions.

But Harsh still has two tigers at the facility.

"I hope we find a home for the other two," Taylor said.

[rrozsa]

I think it should be a process of natural selection. Idiots get killed or maimed when they do stupid things. I think it's best to weed people like that out of the gene pool. Too bad it didn't get him in the crotch so he couldn't pass on those defective genes!

[loyalto1]

DSR57 Get a clue - none of us were there.

The owner of the animal may not be telling the truth about the man sticking his arm in the fence and even if he is what about the monkey that attacked the woman for nothing.

[mdalerwill]

Keeping "exotic" animals is nice turn of phrase, but what it really means is that one is keeping WILD animals whose instincts do not lend themselves to domestication. Hint: WILD animals should stay in the WILD (and it would help a great deal if people stopped encroaching into what little there is left of it).

[hatesthecolt]

Sounds to me like Harsh don't have the problem, sounds to me like people need to stop climbing OTHER peoples fences.

But, I'm sure that the guy that was mauled will sue him for everything
Posted by dsr57

I agree with you in principle ... that guy was a complete knucklehead ("let's pet the pretty kitty"), but people still have to stop keeping exotic animals in facilities they don't belong in. It's a recipe for disaster because some people are stupid and animals are unpredictable.

[displeased]

"Authorities are investigating the mauling of a man by a lion at an animal refuge in western Kansas, but no charges are expected to be filed."

Another cat gets away with assault. When will the injustice end?!?

[hagan_arnold]

The more I hear about these wild animal attacks the more I appreciate my 12 pound cat.

These animals are beautiful but really they need to not be so common place.

[mnmaid]

test

[dsr57]

Sounds to me like Harsh don't have the problem, sounds to me like people need to stop climbing OTHER peoples fences.

But, I'm sure that the guy that was mauled will sue him for everything