Children See Mother Killed By Lion

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27271, 23 December 1949, Page 5

Children See Mother Killed By Lion

NZPA—Copyright NEW YORK, Dec. 21.

Three children today saw a lion kill their mother, Mrs Kay Schaeffer, an animal trainer. ! A big African lion leaped at Mrs Schaeffer’s throat as her son, Michael, aged 18, opened its cage at a training farm in Los Angeles. The lion then turned on Michael when he tried to run for help. His screams attracted a nearby elephant trainer, who beat the lion senseless with an iron pipe. _ , ; Mrs Schaeffer died almost instantly. Michael was unhurt. Two other chiD dren, aged 14 and 4, witnessed their mother’s death. . . ; Mrs Schaeffer, whose professional name was Madame Kovar, was seriously injured when a lioness mauled her at Penrith, New South Wales, in March, 1947. On that occasion she had just begun an evening performance at a circus when the lioness attacked her. Her husband and attendants drove off the lioness with whips. Madame Kovar spent six weeks in hospital.

Mrs Schaeffer, who was born in England, was a member of the Wirth Circus organisation for two years until May of this year. She visited Dunedin in February last Her husband was also with Wirths’ as an elephant trainer. Former associates of Mrs Schaeffer with the circus think that she was training animals for the moving pictures and was attempting to perfect a dangerous act in which lions, tigers and leopards performed together.