A Canadian man who fought a two-year legal battle to keep exotic animals on his property was killed by one of his own pet tigers in 2010. Norman Buwalda, known as Norm, was 66 when he was fatally mauled by his tiger in January 2010.
Legal Battle and Fatal Attack
Norm had previously overturned a local township bylaw banning exotic animals on private property. The bylaw was introduced after a 10-year-old boy was mauled by a tiger on Norm's land in 2004. Norm successfully challenged the legislation in the Supreme Court of Canada and continued keeping big cats, including a 46.5 stone tiger that would later kill him.
According to the Toronto Star, the wealthy Dutch native kept two lions, two tigers, and a cougar as pets, housed in a screened outbuilding on his estate. On January 10, 2010, Ontario Provincial Police confirmed Norm had been mauled to death at his property in Southwold, about 28 kilometres southwest of London, Ontario.
Details of the Incident
Norm reportedly entered the tiger's enclosure to feed the beast when it attacked and killed him. Ontario Provincial Police Constable Troy Carlson said at the time: "The owner of some exotic animals went out to feed the tiger which was in a cage or large pen and the animal attacked him and killed him." He added: "We don't know what actually took place because no one witnessed it, but the tiger ended up attacking him and killing him."
Shortly afterwards, a relative discovered Norm's mutilated body and managed to secure the tiger in a separate section of the enclosure before contacting emergency services. Officers arrived to find the wild cat prowling within the confined area. The killer tiger was later removed and rehomed, and Norm's entire collection of exotic animals was disbanded.
Neighbours' Reactions
Neighbour Joanne Does told the Toronto Star: "He told us once that he trusted animals more than he trusted people. He felt closer to animals than people." She added: "He appeared like a bully... but he was a very sad man, lonely I think."
Fellow neighbour Patricia England recalled that Norm had insisted 'his animals wouldn't hurt a fly'. She said that 'everyone has a place' on this planet, but Norm's home wasn't the right place for wild animals. Patricia added: "It's not the animal's fault. It was just doing what a tiger does."
Previous Tiger Attack
The fatal mauling was not the first violent incident at Norm's property. In June 2004, a 10-year-old boy was attacked by a Siberian tiger that had been let out on a heavy chain lead so the youngster could photograph it for a school report. The boy sustained serious head and neck wounds and required hospital treatment after allegedly losing his footing and tumbling near the tiger.
The assault triggered a two-year legal dispute between Norm and Southwold Township after the council banned keeping wild animals as pets on private land. Norm contested the restriction and won, with an Ontario Superior Court judge determining the bylaw was flawed and excessively broad. Norm, who also served as chairman of the Canadian Exotic Animal Owner's Association, was never prosecuted for the tiger's assault on the boy as he held legal permission to own the creatures.
Residents in the rural community of Southwold said they had spent nearly half a decade campaigning to have the exotic beasts removed from Norm's property, but all their efforts proved unsuccessful.
