Haw Qian Tong has been making the news after she was attacked by a big cat at Zoo Negara last week.
The zoo said it was a leopard. Her parents disagreed, claiming it was a puma.
“They have been misleading the public. We didn’t even go to the leopard’s area,” said Qian Tong’s father, Haw Kim Chuan, 36.
He said the zoo was trying to cover its negligence because the puma’s enclosure did not have a buffer to prevent visitors from getting close to the gate.
“They have a wire fencing that went around the enclosure except at the gate. It was only after the incident that they put up a fence and flower vases there to create a barrier,” he said.
Haw said his 5-year-old daughter was standing at the gate when the puma clawed her cheek and neck and caused her mouth to bleed.
At a press conference arranged by Seputeh DAP MP Teresa Kok yesterday, Qian Tong was able to smile and eat chocolates despite receiving 10 stitches on her upper lip.
Her mother, Koh Ming Choo, 28, said their daughter was having sleepless nights and kept pointing to the picture of a puma when asked which animal had attacked her.
The parents were upset over zoo director Dr Mohamad Ngah’s statement that they were negligent.
Dr Mohamad said Qian Tong’s parents had told his officer that a leopard attacked their child.
“This is what they said. We did not mislead the public,” he said yesterday.
He said there was no eyewitness to the incident as it happened during the time when the staff swapped shifts.
Dr Mohamad said unlike the leopard, the pumas, Shadow and Anuia, would not go close to humans.
“It’s their habit to stay far away from the public. How could it be the puma then?”
Asked about the barrier, Dr Mohamad said the wire fencing was there all the time.
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http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Monday/Frontpage/2116616/Article
The New Strait Time Online 24/12/2007 (Monday)
Wild cat attacks girl at Zoo Negara
By : Jennifer Gomez
Haw Qian Tong with scratches and swollen lips after the attack. (Inset) Is this cat the culprit?
PETALING JAYA: A 5-year-old girl required 10 stitches on her lips after she was attacked by a wild cat at Zoo Negara on Saturday.
It is unclear which animal attacked Haw Qian Tong. The parents of the girl claimed it was a puma while the zoo authorities said it was a leopard.
Her mother, who only wanted to be known as Haw, is blaming the zoo authorities for the incident.
She also complained that the zoo did not give her daughter first aid treatment.
Haw said a puma clawed Qian Tong as she stood with her back to the cage.
The victim’s father then rushed towards his daughter to free her from the animal’s paws but on seeing him approaching, the animal let the child go.
Qian Tong was bleeding from the mouth and had scratches on her cheeks and neck.
Zoo Negara director Dr Mohamed Ngah said Qian Tong’s parents were to be blamed for not adhering to safety warnings.
When photographers visited Zoo Negara to take pictures of the puma enclosure, they were shown the enclosure of the spotted leopard by Mohamed instead.
In clarifying what animal was involved in the incident, Mohamed said he was informed by his staff that it was the spotted leopard.
He added that there was a wire fencing that went around the leopard enclosure and beyond that, trees had been planted, creating an additional barrier between the animal and the visitors.
“In addition, there are warning signs informing visitors not to go near the enclosure and not to stick their fingers through the wire fence,” he said.
A Zoo Negara vehicle sent Qian Tong to its panel clinic but the doctor there advised the Haws to take their daughter to the Kuala Lumpur Hospital.
According to Mohamed, the child was then sent to the hospital in the zoo vehicle.
“We have standard operating procedures to follow and that is what we did in this case.
“We helped to transport the child to the panel clinic and then to the hospital as we felt first aid was not good enough.”
But the trauma for Qian Tong’s parents did not end at the hospital.
The queue at the emergency department was long and the Haws were told they had to wait for their turn to be treated.
The parents then took Qian Tong to Sentosa Medical Centre and Tawakal Hospital, both of which did not have the required medical expertise to treat Qian Tong immediately.
Both hospitals, however, provided the victim with basic first-aid.
Qian Tong finally ended up at the Sunway Medical Centre after 9pm, five hours after the incident.