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Volunteer At 'Tiger King' Carole Baskin's Florida Big Cat Rescue Has Arm 'Nearly Torn Off'

TAMPA (CBSMiami/AP) – Paramedics were called to Tampa's Big Cat Rescue, owned by Carol Baskin of Tiger King fame, Thursday morning after a volunteer staffer was bitten by an animal, according to WFLA.

It happened around 8 a.m. Hillsborough Fire Rescue said the bite from the tiger was serious but not life-threatening. The person was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

Baskin's sanctuary is home to exotic cats, mostly tigers, that live out their days after being rescued from captivity. It is currently closed to the public due to the coronavirus outbreak.

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Baskin said in an email that the volunteer, Candy Couser, was feeding a tiger named Kimba when she noticed the animal was not in his usual location. Baskin said Couser opened a gate that had been clipped shut but she reached in to unclip it.

"This is our universal signal NOT to open a gate" without assistance, Baskin said. "It is against our protocols for anyone to stick any part of their body into a cage with a cat in it."

"Kimba grabbed her arm and nearly tore it off at the shoulder," Baskin added.

Couser was taken to a hospital for treatment of serious injuries after staff and other volunteers at Big Cat Rescue sought to stop the bleeding, Baskin said.

Kimba will be placed in quarantine for the next 30 days, but Baskin said the tiger was "just acting normal due to the presence of food and the opportunity." Baskin said Couser did not want Kimba to suffer any consequences for the incident.

The sanctuary was founded by Baskin and Don Lewis in the 1990s and is a prominent animal sanctuary. Lewis disappeared in 1997.

The incident came the same day the U.S. House is to vote on a bill, the Big Cat Public Safety Act, championed by Baskin that would ban handling of big cat cubs and personal possession of them in places such as backyards.

"This sort of tragedy can happen in the blink of an eye and we cannot relax our guard for a second around these dangerous cats," Baskin said.

"Tiger King", which debuted in March, was a documentary series about Joseph Maldonado-Passage, also known as "Joe Exotic," an eccentric former Oklahoma zookeeper who loves big cats.

Maldonado-Passage was sentenced to 22 years in prison earlier this year for his role in a murder-for-hire plot. He was convicted of trying to hire someone to kill Baskin, who had tried to shut him down, accusing the Oklahoma zoo of abusing animals and selling big cat cubs.

In retaliation, Maldonado-Passage raised questions about Baskin's former husband, Lewis. The documentary extensively covered Maldonado-Passage's repeated accusations that Baskin killed her husband and possibly fed him to her tigers. Baskin has not been charged with any crime and has repeatedly released statements refuting the accusations made in the series.

Baskin most recently appeared on ABC's "Dancing with the Stars."

(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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