[Baz]

Anyone here near Zainesville?

This situation really sucks.....many large exotic animals are dying - the owner took his life and left the animals to fend for themselves......awful situation for all concerned.

I truly hope they can rescue these animals rather than out and out shooting them.

Wild Animals Loose in Ohio: Town Under Lockdown | KLPW Radio

The owner of the preserve, Terry Thompson of Zanesville, Ohio, was found dead of unknown causes inside the preserve while the animals cages were found unsecured. Thompson, 61, was recently released from prison after serving one year on federal weapons charges. According to investigators, he has been cited in the past for animal abuse and neglect.

Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz said at a news conference that residents should stay inside until the animals are rounded up. Several schools across the area have cancelled classes for Wednesday.

Police, who have been ordered to shoot to kill, describe the loose animals as "mature, very big and aggressive."

Lutz said that several aggressive animals were shot by deputies when they were discovered near Thompson's body at his preserve. Thompson's preserve was surrounded by a fence, and not all animals on the property fled through the open gates.

"These are wild animals, wild animals that you would see on TV in Africa," Lutz said at a news conference Tuesday evening.

As many as 48 wild animals, including cheetahs, grizzly bears, black bears, wolves, lions, a white Siberian tiger, camels and giraffes, are on the loose across Zanesville, which has a population of about 25,000 residents. Police said that orangutans and chimps were found in Thompson's home, but they were still in their cages.

Officers said Tuesday that they have shot as many as 25 of the animals so far, including bears and wolves, but it is still unclear exactly how many animals escaped, according to the Muskingum County Sheriff's Department.

"This is a bad situation," Mutz said. "It's been a bad situation for a long time and the last thing we want to do is have any of our public hurt."

Deputies are working with the animals' caregiver, who says the animals were fed on Monday. They're putting food in the animals' pens in the hopes they might return.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol has cordoned off seven square miles near Interstate 70 and officers are using infrared devices to find the animals.