© 2025 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY
WEDW-FM · WNPR · WPKT · WRLI-FM
Public Files Contact · ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Scars To Prove It: Living Through Animal Attacks

Today, you’re gonna hear from three people who had close encounters with wild animals - and have the scars to prove it.

You’ll hear how - and if - any of these people felt defined by their experiences, and what sense they’ve made out of their encounters. Plus, you’ll hear from a wildlife expert about what animals you should be careful to keep away from here in New England.

Join the conversation onFacebook,Twitter, and email.

GUESTS:

  • Kelci "Saff" Saffery from "Tiger King" was the park manager at the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park in Oklahoma, and he's now living in California. His forearm was amputated after a tiger at the zoo shredded it
  • Jane Hefferan is a registered nurse in Nashville, Tennessee, who has been in and out of hospitals since two brown recluse spiders bit her in 2008
  • Kyle Dickman is a New Mexico resident, and a contributing editor at Outside Magazine. He is the author of “On the Burning Edge: A Fateful Fire and the Men Who Fought It”, and was bitten by a northern Pacific rattlesnake in Yosemite National Park
  • Tracy Rittenhouse is an Associate Professor and Director of Wildlife and Fisheries Conservation Center at the Dept. of Natural Resources and the Environment at the University of Connecticut

Catie Talarski contributed to this show.

Chion Wolf is the host of Audacious with Chion Wolf on Connecticut Public, spotlighting the stories of people whose experiences, professions, or conditions defy convention or are often misunderstood.

Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

Federal funding is gone.

Congress has eliminated all funding for public media.

That means $2.1 million per year that Connecticut Public relied on to deliver you news, information, and entertainment programs you enjoyed is gone.

The future of public media is in your hands.

All donations are appreciated, but we ask in this moment you consider starting a monthly gift as a Sustainer to help replace what’s been lost.