A YouTube video shows the moment a man leapt over a zoo fence in Ohio to pet the cougars.
Joshua Newell filmed himself climbing over the outer fence of the big cat enclosure at the Columbus Zoo to get a closer look at the felines.
And the bold 35-year-old petted the two adult cougars while sayings phrases like “kitty, kitty, kitty” and, luckily, he actually managed to hold onto his hand.
The cougars actually didn’t seem all to bothered by the situation, but the staff at the zoo didn’t see the funny side of the stunt at all.
In fact, the zoo are so annoyed with Josh’s video that they’ve pressed charges against him.
Columbus Zoo called the incident “alarming”, adding:
Animal welfare and safety are two of our top priorities. Barriers, like the fence line at the cougar habitat, are in place to keep our guests safe. The actions taken in this video were alarming and resulted in our decision to press charges.
Josh is due to appear in court on Wednesday for trespassing. Let’s hope all those YouTube views were worth it!
