What drives people to bring deadly animals into their homes? What dangerous mix of obsession, loneliness and desire causes them to live with animals that have the potential to kill? Thousands of animal lovers around the world make the decision to purchase pet tigers, chimpanzees, crocodiles and other dangerous animals each and every year. Can it be dangerous?
Premiering April 6th, Animal Planet's new series FATAL ATTRACTIONS will bring stories of wild pet ownership to highlight how just one mistake could result in devastating consequences. This gripping series will examine the most extraordinary pet attacks of recent years - incidents in which people living with tigers, wolf-dogs and snakes suddenly become their prey.
The 13-part series FATAL ATTRACTIONS will air every Wednesday at 8pm from April 6th on Animal Planet.
It is a basic instinct for humans to want to love and be loved. But for some, this basic desire can take them into obsessive and dangerous territory when it comes to living with wild animals. FATAL ATTRACTIONS will delve deeply into the psychological and emotional drivers that make some people get too close to animals that are best left in the field.
Mixing drama, documentary and expert testimony and as compelling as a thriller, each episode will focus on a different group of animals revealing the psychological drive that compels people bring them into their homes, how the relationship develops and why, ultimately, these animals attack.
Some of the incidents in the series are:
THE DEADLIEST SHOW ON EARTH
In 1974, at the age of 27, Wayne Franzen quit his job, pooled his entire life savings and bought a two-ton Asian elephant. With no prior experience of exotic animals he taught himself how to train a host of deadly creatures. Two decades later, Wayne would lose his life in front of a horrified audience.
A BUFFALO RIDES SHOTGUN
Ronnie Donah would pay the ultimate price for trusting his beloved pet whitetail buck and entering its enclosure during the rutting season, when the animal becomes a deadly "testosterone fuelled missile." And for all his ambition and hard work, Bob Wiley lacked experience when it came to handling his newly acquired bull. One simple mistake left him fighting for his life.
MY SISTER THE LION
A romantic relationship built around a collection of lions and tigers creates a false sense of security for Tania Dumstrey-Soos. The comfort she feels around them leads the 32-year-old to her death, mauled by a tiger and witnessed by her young son. And lion owner Charles Peters is forced to kill his beloved pet lion Sheba in order to save the life of his human daughter.
THERE'S A CROCODILE IN MY BED
Despite the fearsome power and predatory instincts of the saltwater crocodile, there are some in Australia who keep them as pets. Francis Mauriks keeps two 10-foot "salties" in a shed in his backyard and Vicky Lowing shares her suburban home with three pet crocodiles, one of whom she takes for drives in the car and another that lives in the bath.
A TIGER LOOSE IN HARLEM
In 2003, a 500-pound tiger is removed from a Harlem apartment after attacking owner Antoine Yates. In the Nevada desert, Vietnam vet Karl Mitchell lives with an entire pride of tigers, while William Olsen's tiger tale ends in tragedy. Most of us would never invite a tiger into our homes, so what makes these individuals different?
SNAKES IN A TRAILER!
This episode tells the story of Anita Finch, whose tragic childhood led to a passion for nature, one that developed into a deadly obsession with venomous snakes. And Ed Cassano shares his home with 40 snakes, and despite a near-death experience, continues to indulge in his fascination for lethal reptiles. What drives people like Anita and Ed to ignore the dangers of their desires?
DON'T FEED THE BEARS!
Donna Munson was an elderly lady who enjoyed feeding bears around her home, but when she tried to break up a conflict between an adult male and a cub, she met a tragic fate. Native American enthusiast Sandra Piovesan's body was found lying amongst the pack of wolf-dog hybrids she adored, and Karen Noyes was arrested and banned from her home after feeding bears in her back garden.
MY PET PYTHON
Some people are born without a natural fear of snakes. Meet Ted Dres, whose pet 13-foot python coiled around his neck and asphyxiated him as his horrified girlfriend looked on; Phil Gallant, whose rhinoceros viper sends him to the hospital clinging to life; and Jim Harrison, who milked venom from one too many deadly snakes.
RAGING BULLS
The relationship between men, bulls and bison appears to be governed by an unwritten rule — there is a line that should never be crossed. Those who choose to cross that line do so at their peril. FATAL ATTRACTIONS presents shocking stories of individuals who tried to keep these massive, horned creatures as pets, only for their luck to run out in the end.
REPTILES
Ronald Huff lived with seven large Nile monitor lizards in his small studio apartment, and Alexandria Hall shared her home with more than 20 snakes and lizards. Yet the creatures that profoundly fascinated them also killed them. What was it about these people that encouraged them to take up such a deadly hobby? What change of events caused their demise?
CHIMPS
Chimpanzees, our closet animal relative, possess six times the strength of an average adult male and have the temperament of a five-year-old child. Despite their strength and their wild tendencies, some people believe chimps make loving companions. Meet Charla Nash, who was horribly disfigured by her friend's pet chimp, and chimp attack survivor St. James Davis.
BIG CATS
Stories of wild pet ownership highlight how just one mistake can result in devastating consequences. Julie Burros was scalped by her pet black leopard after misinterpreting his mood. Cyndi Gamble paid the ultimate price when an open cage door left her vulnerable to her pet tiger she knew could kill her if it got the chance. And is a former Tarzan tempting fate with his feline pets?
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