In 2011, a Zanesville, Ohio resident named Terry Thompson died by suicide after he released 50 exotic animals from his farm, according to NBC News. According to GQ, Thompson unleashed "18 tigers, 17 lions, 8 bears, 3 cougars, 2 wolves, 1 baboon, [and] 1 macaque." (The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that Thompson intended to allow his animals to eat his body after he died.) The incident would be referred to as the Zanesville massacre.
As GQ noted, Jack Hanna was called in. Zanesville sits about 50 miles from the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, where Jack Hanna was serving as director emeritus at the time, and as the magazine put it, is "a trusted animal advocate." According to WBNS, he agonizingly approved the decision to kill the freed wild animals upon sight. Of the 50 animals, the deaths of 49, mostly via police gunshot, were confirmed. (The fiftieth creature, a macaque, is presumed to have been killed by one of the other animals, according to GQ.) "That was the most difficult thing that has happened in my entire career," Hanna told WBNS. "Here I am saving animals all my life, and now having to put the animals down. Killing upsets me."
If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
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