Facebook/Growler Pines Tiger Preserve

An associate of "Tiger King" star Joe Exotic was mauled by ... you guessed it ... a tiger while performing an animal show in Oklahoma -- and he died a brutal death, TMZ has learned.

Ryan Easley was handling the tiger during the Saturday show at the Growler Pines Tiger Preserve in Hugo, Choctaw County Sheriff Terry Park tells TMZ.

Park says Easley was suddenly set upon by the tiger, which grabbed him around his neck and shoulder area, and sank its teeth into him before violently shaking him. Facebook/Circus World

Paramedics and deputies responded to the scene after receiving a call around 2 PM for a tiger that attacked its handler, Park tells us, adding Easley was pronounced dead a short time later.

We're told the Oklahoma Department of

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