() A close bond turned fatal at an Oklahoma tiger preserve Saturday, when a handler was fatally mauled by the very animal he had raised from a cub.

Ryan Easley, 37, was the operator of the Growler Pines Tiger Preserve near Hugo, Oklahoma, and had spent years caring for the tiger that ultimately took his life.

Wildlife biologist and TV host Forrest Galante told “Elizabeth Vargas Reports” that the tiger “didn’t want to kill” Easley, calling the mauling a “mistake.”

Tiger was a ‘cat being a cat’: Wildlife biologist

Galante compared the fatal accident to instances when people play with their house cats and unintentionally provoke them, causing minor scratches.

However, the key difference, Galante noted, is that when a tiger lashes out, “it can be absolutely fatal,” much like the “poorly placed bite” that killed Easley.

Galante emphasized that the tiger “didn’t want to kill” Easley, and that the mauling underscores the “unpredictability that large cats exhibit.”

Galante, who also works with large animals, says “it’s never the animal’s fault” and that he and others who put themselves in proximity to dangerous animals assume the “huge risks involved.”

Easley’s father echoed Galante’s sentiment to reporters, calling the attack a “love bite.”

Growler Pines Tiger Preserve put out a statement following Easley’s death: “This tragedy is a painful reminder of both the beauty and unpredictability of the natural world. Ryan understood those risks — not out of recklessness but out of love.”

All tours and animal encounters at the preserve have been canceled following Easley’s death. It is currently unclear whether the tiger will be euthanized.

PETA reacts

Following the mauling, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals put out a statement condemning Easley’s practices, claiming that in the past he “forced” his tigers to “perform in cruel circuses” around the country and “kept them trapped in cages for hours when they weren’t performing.”

The statement mentions a particular incident in 2017, in which Easley was reported to have violently whipped tigers during a training session, with one tiger allegedly struck 31 times.

PETA senior director Debbie Metzler added to the statement, calling out Easley’s practices and saying, “it’s never a surprise when a human is attacked by a stressed big cat who has been caged, whipped, and denied everything natural and important to them.”

Metzler added that wild animal exhibitors should leave the business and send the big cats to accredited sanctuaries.

Tiger was reportedly acquired from the ‘Tiger King’

According to PETA, Easley acquired the Tigers from Joseph Maldonado, or “Joe Exotic,” and Bhagavan “Doc” Antle, who were both featured in the Netflix true-crime docuseries “Tiger King.”

Maldonado commented on the incident in a social media post, stating: “No one can blame the tiger for what happened. We all take risk in what we do and we don’t need further laws to ban tigers because of this because you can get killed doing just about anything.”

PETA describes Easley as being an “associate” of the incarcerated Maldonado, who was sentenced to 22 years in prison after being convicted of two counts of murder-for-hire and 17 animal abuse charges.

‘s Steph Whiteside contributed to this report.