Video shows man petting full-grown tiger at Collier County preserve. FWC issues citation
An employee at a Collier County wildlife preserve faces a citation after authorities say she allowed several relatives to access an enclosure with two tigers and pet them, captured in a social media video that went viral.
According to an incident report from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, around 2:30 p.m. Jan. 23, investigators responded to Kowiachobee Animal Preserve, 2861 4th Ave. S.E., in Naples, in response to a complaint involving a social media video.
On Dec. 10, 2023, a subject by the name of Al Schroeder posted a video on Facebook, showing two white tigers that belonged to Jonathan Peter Slaby, 57, the report said.
Tiger shot after attack: Eko the Malayan tiger born in Arkansas, raised in Seattle, transported to Naples in 2020
Two tigers bite arm: 'We need an ambulance bad': 911 calls, video reveal frantic response to tiger attack near Naples
Authorities said the video shows a hand coming into direct contact with a fully-grown white tiger's nose.
On the video, the investigator said he could hear at least four different voices, one of which he said he recognized as Brandi Shane Verder, 51, facility director at Kowiachobee Animal Preserve in Collier County.
According to the report, Brandi Verder told authorities that between 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. Dec. 10, 2023, she, her husband Gary Edson Verder, II, 49; her mother Christine Frushour, whose age isn't disclosed in the report; and her stepfather Alan Schroeder, 66, were behind the scenes in close proximity to the twin white tigers' cage.
According to the report, Brandi Verder said that under her supervision, Schroeder put his hand up to the tigers' enclosure, but was not positive there was actual physical contact.
Authorities said the video shows Schroeder's hand against the primary enclosure's chain-link fence. Schroeder appeared to say the tiger has a "soft nose," investigators noted.
Authorities said the video shows the tiger made contact with his hand. The tigers weigh approximately 400 pounds each, according to the report.
When officers spoke with Slaby, he said he doesn't allow contact with the tigers, and that at the time of the incident, he wasn't aware the encounter had happened.
According to the report, Slaby said Brandi Verder is authorized behind the scenes. She reportedly told Slaby the people in the video were her parents, and that she was with them at the time.
Authorities said Gary Verder confirmed in December 2023 he and Brandi Verder were present at Kowiachobee Animal Preserve when Schroeder and Frushour put their hands directly against the chain-link fence of the tigers' primary enclosure.
Schroeder told authorities he took the video and posted it on his Facebook around Dec. 10, 2023.
He said he wasn't aware it was illegal to have physical contact with the tigers, according to the report, and explained that Brandi Verder allowed him behind the public safety barrier at the tigers' enclosure.
According to the report, Schroeder said he felt the tigers' whiskers on his hand.
Authorities concluded Brandi Verder allowed Schroeder and Frushour behind the public safety barriers while under her supervision, while Frushour and Schroeder put their hands against the tigers' primary enclosure. They also found that Schroeder came into direct physical contact with a full-grown tiger.
Officers issued Brandi Verder a misdemeanor citation for allowing the physical contact with the tiger.
Gary Verder answered a call requesting comment Thursday afternoon, but declined, saying the incident remains under investigation.
Two tiger attacks in SWFL, months apart
Southwest Florida recorded two tiger attacks between December 2021 and March 2022.
Eko, the rare 8-year-old tiger Malayan tiger at the Naples Zoo killed Dec. 29, died quickly from significant internal bleeding, a necropsy showed.
The tiger was shot by a Collier County sheriff’s deputy late Dec. 29 so it would release its grip on 28-year-old River Rosenquist's arm.
The shooting came after Rosenquist, from Naples, scaled a 4.5-foot privacy fence designed to keep the public from the tiger’s enclosure. Rosenquist was attempting to feed or pet the big cat, officials said.
Rosenquist was taken to Lee Memorial Hospital in Fort Myers after he made a 911 call to authorities. The incident happened after the zoo had closed.
Ignacio Meabe Martinez, 50, of Lehigh Acres, suffered severe injuries to both arms when he was bitten by two tigers at Wooten's Everglades Airboat Tours, in Ochopee, on March 22, 2022.
Martinez sustained large open wounds to his forearms. Deputies said he wasn't bleeding, but his tendons were visible.
Medical responders took him to the National Park Service helicopter pad where he flew to Gulf Coast Medical Center, in Fort Myers, records indicate.
The witness told Martinez to stop what he was doing, but Martinez ignored him, according to the incident report, before placing his hands through the fence for a second time.
The tiger grabbed both of Martinez's arms with his mouth and briefly held them before releasing him, according to the report.
The witness said he separated Martinez from the fence and placed him on the ground.
The News-Press and Naples Daily News archives contributed to this report.
Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Threads @tomasfrobeltran, Instagram @tomasfrobeltran and Facebook @tomasrodrigueznews.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Florida wildlife preserve employee lets relative pet white tiger
