Photo opp with "tame" cheetahs. Husband keeps taking pics, doesn't realize wife is being attacked.

[Liberal_in_LA]

Forced to the ground and with blood pouring from her head, this British holidaymaker had a miraculous escape after being attacked by supposedly tame cheetahs.

Violet D’Mello was visiting a wildlife park with her husband Archie during a trip to South Africa for her 60th birthday.

But their day out went horrifically wrong when two cheetahs turned on her, knocking her to the ground and biting her legs and head in a horrifying attack.

Other tourists tried to scare the beasts off as park attendants desperately fought to get them away from the injured woman.

And her husband? He carried on taking photographs, saying he did not quite realise what was happening.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2139442/Violet-DMello-mauled-tame-cheetahs-holiday-safari-park.html#ixzz1uJBhnM7E

[hifiguy]

1. Big cats are incredibly beautiful

and even more dangerous. They are not just big house cats, they are the most efficient killing machines evolution has been able to produce. They are best observed from the far side of a serious safety barrier.

[rfranklin]

7. Notice the cat licking his lips in anticipation...

Yum yum!

[Scuba]

2. Ooooh. Vacation photos. Everyone loves those.

[Liberal_in_LA]

5. yeah. and she looks younger than 60!

[Nye Bevan]

3. Too many tourists on safari think they are in Disneyland.

Hey- the crocodiles on the Jungle Cruise don't do that!

[yesphan]

4. Damn !

Bet that was a bit scary for the lady. She did keep hold of her camera though.

[Liberal_in_LA]

9. the aftermath:

[rfranklin]

6. PLaying with big cats...this one almost deserves the Darwin award...

but I understand you have to actually die during the act of winning the award.

[Liberal_in_LA]

8. in 1st pic she's got her hand resting on cat's head. !! Doesn't take much to piss off a cat.

[Larkspur]

10. Where's the cat whisperer when you need him?

Maybe these "kitties" mistook her for one of their chew toys?

[arcane1]

11. I blame that crocodile-hunting idiot

He's probably not to blame, but since he made his fame by treating wild animals like pets, his fate should've been a lesson to people.

[leftyohiolib]

12. about as dumb as bungee jumping or skydiving.hasnt anyone seen "when animals attack"

one i remeber was someone was posing next to a "tame" bear and during the shoot the bear went off.

[Enrique]

13. "you said you wanted your 60th birthday to be memorable!"

Mr D’Mello, 64, a helicopter pilot who booked the month-long trip as a birthday gift for his wife, said he kept taking photos until he realised the cheetahs were biting her.

He should top it off with some kind of creative presentation of those photos. Maybe on one of those cube things.

[JHB]

14. Blame the facility for promoting their "tame" cheetahs

They may have been cute when they were kittens, but you cannot reliably "raise to be tame" a non-domesticated animal. Even if they are OK most of the time, under the right conditions those deeply-wired instincts will kick in. And those conditions are practically inevitable when you constantly have untrained and unfamiliar people around them. Someone who knows the animals well may spot warning signs, but even that's not guaranteed.


But I bet the "pet the cheetahs" enclosure was a big draw, so stupid won out.

[frylock]

15. house cats are barely "tame" ffs..

looking at the aftermath, my kitteh has done more damage to my forearm than that cheetah did! glad she's okay.

[mainer]

16. Cheetahs and leopards cannot be tamed. Lions, maybe.

That was a piece of wisdom I got from a big-cat expert in Africa.

[longship]

17. I taut I taw a puddy tat!

Bad puddy tat. Very bad puddy tat.

Seriously!

Lions, tigers, and bears -- and yes, cheetahs -- are not fucking cute furry pets. They are fucking predators whose genes have made sure that they are awesome killing machines. It's what they fucking do; it's the only thing they do (other than make more lions, tigers, and bears -- and yes, cheetahs).

Anybody who sees them as anything like a pet, needs to stay the fuck away from them.

This couple was stupid. The outfits that promote this bullshit should be closed down and the owners should pay heavy fines or serve some jail time.

Stupidity! Utter lunacy!

[Ian David]

18. I did one of those "meet the giant cats" photo-ops in South Carolina. It was much different.

For one thing, they never described any of the animals as "tame."

Secondly, they only let us pose with BABY tigers.

And most importantly, each animal was accompanied by two trainers, one of whom never seemed to take their hands of the animal.

They didn't just put you into a cage and say, "Go pet the nice kitties."