The wife of a man working as an ‘exotic pet dealer’ was tragically killed by one of those very pets – a cute bear, lovingly named Teddy
Kelly Ann Walz and her husband, Michael, were widely regarded by all who knew them as animal lovers who used their wealth to home wild and rare beasts.
Their lavish hilltop top, near Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the US, was home to many animals until a horror tragedy happened in their home, which doubled as home for wildlife.
Their collection of wild animals included an African lion, a cougar, a jaguar, a tiger, a leopard, and two servals. These animals alone posed a huge risk of danger but it was their beloved bear, Teddy, that proved to be the most menacing.
In October 2009, Kelly’s body was found dead inside of the cage in which they kept Teddy, not too far away from his own dead body, according to reports from The Seattle Times. They had dedicated nine years to raising the bear all the way from being a cub to his adult life at their home.
The 37-year-old had a custom-built 15-by-15-foot cage made out of steel and concrete, which was being cleaned the day Teddy launched his fatal attack. It was reported this was not in fact the first time they’d had complications with the bear’s behaviour.
With this in mind, the Waz’s tried to handle him and their other pets safely by tossing food into a different area of the cage, keeping the animals occupied as they cleaned it out. When the tragic news of Kelly’s death broke, a friend of the family and neighbour, Scott Castone, told reporters: “She’s done it 1,000 times, and on 1,001, something happened.”
It was this neighbour’s children who watched from their home as they saw the 350-pound bear attack Kelly as she screamed for help. But it was too late; -by the time Scott Castone arrived armed at their property, Kelly was dead.
In an attempt to protect himself and other locals, he opened fire at the bear, killing him. He said: “He got off of her to come out to me. I did what anyone would do. It was pretty much self-defence.”
Despite the Walz’s alleged precautions with their animal care, a supervisor for the Pennsylvania Game Commission, Tim Conway, seems to think more could have been done to protect themselves. His expertise suggests most keepers have a two-section cage, so the animal is completely isolated while the other is being cleared out.
He said: “Why this woman chose to go in the same area that the bear was in is beyond me. It’s a fatal mistake. These things are not tame animals; they’re wild animals.”
According to CBS News, Michael Walz was listed in state corporation records as the president of World of Reptiles Inc. at the time of Kelly’s death. The business itself, which was seemingly based in their shared home, was thought to have been created back in 1988.