Another tiger tamer wannabee who probably won't live to see 50
Will one day be seen on 1000 Ways to Die
Tiger in a Shed Bobcat in a Box at Animal Rescue Kingdom owned by Diane Zandman and in conjunction with Jeff and Barbara Harrod of Vanishing Species Wildlife, Inc. 10561 SW 67th Ct Ocala, FL 34476
OAKLEY, Kan. (AP) -- Authorities are investigating a weekend incident
in which a man was mauled by a lion at an animal refuge in western
Kansas, but no charges are expected to be filed.
The lion's owner, Jeffrey Harsh, told authorities that man staying at
the Free Breakfast Inn motel next to the refuge near Oakley apparently
made his way Saturday into an outer perimeter lion cage.
When Harsh showed up to feed the animals that evening, he found the
man with his arm over the top of a gate on the inner cage. A Barbary
lion had grabbed the man's right arm, said Thomas County Sheriff Rod
Taylor.
Harsh reportedly beat the lion with a steel pipe so it would release
the man. He then drove him to a Colby hospital. The victim, Bradley
Buchanan, has since been transferred to a Denver hospital for more
surgery. Buchanan, of Oakley, is expected to recover.
Taylor said photos of Buchanan's deep wounds appear to show that the
lion reached the bone.
Harsh previously has faced legal problems for his ownership of exotic
animals.
On Tuesday, the Thomas County prosecutor agreed to dismiss a
misdemeanor case against Harsh, provided he transfers three Barbary
lions to the Detroit Zoo.
Zoo officials were expected to travel to Oakley within three months to
examine the lions for any diseases. If the tests are negative, the
lions would then be taken to Detroit.
Taylor said no charges are expected to be filed in Saturday's
incident, providing Harsh follows through on his promise to move the
lions.
But Harsh still has two tigers at the facility.
"I hope we find a home for the other two," Taylor said.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29397583/
Lion Mauls Man in Western Kansas
Last Update: 2/25 10:02 pm
You wouldn't know it driving down I-70, but outside of Oakley you'll find cats you don't normally see in Kansas.
For almost 20 years Jeffrey Harsh has managed the Prairie Cat Animal Refuge. The refuge sits between a motel and farm field. From the outside, you see abandoned vehicles, construction debris and fencing. "No they don't have Disney land facilities, but are they fed well and are they happy," said Harsh.
Besides taking care of three lions and two tigers, Harsh also hires people to work at the Free Breakfast motel. Saturday night one of the workers came to see the animals. "He loved them and was good with them when he was sober."
But Harsh and the sheriff say the man was drunk and tried to pet the lion. "When you're drinking or under medication it tells them you're part of the food chain," said Harsh.
When he came over to feed the animals Saturday night, Harsh noticed the perimeter fence was open and he heard screaming. "It had him by the arm. I broke him lose from the animal by whacking her over the head. There was a major tear in his arm," Harsh said.
Harsh took the man to the hospital in Colby. He was then air lifted to a Denver hospital. Harsh says they stitched him up and he's been released.
Thomas County Sheriff Rod Taylor says long before this attack the county has tried to shut the refuge down. The lions have bitten two other people. "Get those animals out of there. They cause more trouble and we've almost got it accomplished," said the sheriff.
Due to Saturday's attack, Harsh agreed to give up the cats to avoid exotic animal charges. He says it's probably a good time to do it because it's getting too expensive to feed them.
Harsh and the county worked to find new owners for the animals. If the Kansas Health Department allows, the Detroit Zoo will take the three lions. The Detroit Zoo tells Eyewitness News after the lions are checked for rabies and approved by the health department they'll pick them up. A zoo employee says that could take several weeks or several months.
The zoo doesn't have room for the tigers, so Harsh is still looking for place to move them.
http://www.woai.com/mostpopular/story/Lion-Mauls-Man-in-Western-Kansas/snbsG-uIxkeo1J6EgTVaLQ.cspx
Lion Mauls Hotel Worker In Western Kansas
Last Update: 2/24 10:12 pm
A lion mauled a hotel worker near the town of Oakley in Western Kansas over the weekend.
The Thomas County Sheriff tells Eyewitness News, a worker stuck his hands into the lion's cage at the Free Breakfast Inn. The owner of the motel keeps three lions and two tigers there.
The motel owner, Jeff Harsh, drove the victim to a Colby hospital. Emergency crews then flew the victim to a hospital in Denver. The sheriff says he's expected to recover.
The sheriff says the Detroit Zoo has agreed to take three of the big cats but zoo officials have to assess them first.
http://www.woai.com/mostpopular/story/Lion-Mauls-Hotel-Worker-In-Western-Kansas/QysxW1MzbUCvwWZ36w12XA.cspx
THOMAS COUNTY, Kansas – Authorities in Thomas County are investigating an apparent lion attack.
An Oakley man, identified as Bradley Buchanan, was staying at a motel off Interstate 70 in Thomas County when he allegedly approached a lion cage outside the property and had his arm bitten by the animal.
He’s now being treated at a Denver hospital.
The county has long been fighting the lion’s owner for having exotic pets and continues to investigate the attack.
http://www.ksn.com/news/kansasnews/40299337.html
Lion mauls man at western Kansas animal refuge
1 day ago
OAKLEY, Kan. (AP) — Authorities are investigating the mauling of a man by a lion at an animal refuge in western Kansas, but no charges are expected to be filed.
The lion's owner, Jeffrey Harsh, told authorities that the man was staying at a motel next to his refuge near Oakley and apparently made his way into an outer perimeter lion cage on Saturday.
When Harsh showed up to feed the animals that evening, he found the man with his arm over the top of a gate on the inner cage. Thomas County Sheriff Rod Taylor said a Barbary lion had grabbed the man's right arm.
Harsh reportedly beat the lion with a steel pipe so it would release the man, then drove the man to a hospital. The victim, Bradley Buchanan of Oakley, has since been transferred to a Denver hospital for more surgery and is expected to recover.
Taylor said photos of Buchanan's deep wounds appear to show that the lion reached the bone.
Harsh previously has faced legal problems for his ownership of exotic animals.
On Tuesday, the Thomas County prosecutor agreed to dismiss a misdemeanor case against Harsh, provided that he transfers three Barbary lions to the Detroit Zoo.
Zoo officials were expected to travel to Oakley within three months to make sure the animals are healthy before agreeing to take them.
Taylor said no charges are expected to be filed in Saturday's mauling, providing Harsh follows through on his promise to move the lions.
But Harsh still has two tigers at the facility.
"I hope we find a home for the other two," Taylor said.
Information from: The Hays Daily News, http://www.hdnews.net
In case anyone wants to contact Jeffrey Harsh about the tigers, (public
searches, if correct show he may be around 66 years old), the below
phone numbers may be how to reach him. Addresses for both match, one appears to be the motel, the other, residential.
Jeffrey J. Harsh (residential) (785) 672 - 3141
Free Breakfast Inn (785) 899-5264
We are trying to make arrangements to take a tiger and a bobcat from Diane Zandman 10561 SW 67th CT Ocala, Fl 34476 352-291-1678 According to the only caregiver left at the property, Mary, Diane Zandman the Class I licensee, has been in the hospital for the past 2 or 3 months and is not expected to live. Her belonging were removed from the house last week. I am copying you on sections of the discussion I have had with our board, so that you know there are two people on the board of the non profit that owns the property where the tiger and bobcat live, Jeff and Barbara Harrod, who also have Class I felid licenses under the name of Vanishing Species Wildlife. Mary says you have been calling her and telling her she had to have the cats off the property by Monday Feb. 23, but I think she has lied to us since you could just require that Jeff and Barbara add the 10561 SW 67th CT Ocala, Fl 34476 location to their license, since it was already a facility that was approved by you. The fact that these cages and the signifcant abuse these cats are subjected to are considered acceptable to the FWC is awful, but that is another matter.
To my board: Because this is a huge commitment, that will cost us 7500.00 per year, just for the tiger, I want you to be fully advised of the situation. Like most of these cases, the people we are dealing with are sleazy and if their lips are moving, they are lying. Much of what Mary told Scott has turned out to be untrue and the rest of it unlikely. The bottom line is that the owner appears to be a rip off artist who doesn't want the cats any more. The only way we will assist such people is by having them surrender their license and contract with us to never own another exotic cat. We will require the same of Diane Zandman, but I do not know if she will refuse when it comes to putting the pen to the line. I can't take it that far until I know for sure that Tigger has a forever sponsor though, because we just cannot afford to take on one more tiger right now. Our first commitment is to the cats we already have and taking on another 7500.00 a year in expenses just makes it harder for us to do the most important work, which is to end the trade in these cats altogether.
I did some research on Anita Diane Zandman who is the owner of the tiger and the bobcat in Ocala.
Diane is a Director of Vanishing Species Wildlife, Inc., along with Jeff and Barbara Harrod. My guess is that this Jeff is the same Jeff that Mary said let the horse starve. They have big cats too and Mary (the only animal caregiver who comes any more) said Diane got her hours from Jeff, so this seems to fit. http://vanishingspecies.net/exoticpets.htm
The 6000 sf house on 6.5 ac that we saw today is owned by Growing Involvement for Teens, Inc. which is a non profit created 5/14/99, just in time for it to have the house deeded to it on 10/99 with no apparent mortgage recorded, so I don't know if the home was donated to the non profit, or if the non profit had a pile of cash to invest. At any rate, one of the Directors of Growing Involvement for Teens, Inc. is Barbara Harrod of Vanishing Wildlife Species and Diane's son, who we saw today, Steve Zandman.
I pulled the 990's for Growing Involvement for Teens and it brings in between $5,000 and $15,000 each year and spends almost all of it on animal feed. It claims a 400,000 asset, and the house and land are tax assessed for 523,000.00, so that is probable the asset. It says Diane is the only employee, working 40 hours a week, but says she is paid 0. They are not claiming the fact that she has been living in the house for the past 6 years (that we know of.)
There is no FL business, nor is there a non profit listed with Guidestar called Animal Rescue Kingdom. There is a website for it here: http://www.animalrescuekingdom.com/html/contact_us.html There is no web site for Growing Involvement for Teens. Neither of these organizations can be found in an online search of the non profits approved in FL for solicitation at http://app1.800helpfla.com/giftgiversguide/ which means they could be fined 1000.00 a day for illegally soliciting funds.
Until November 17, 2008 the house and land appeared to be free and clear, but they borrowed 300,000.00 from Edward J.A. Ohanrahan, Jr. with the first monthly payment of 2250.00 due Jan. 1 and a balloon for the balance is due in 2012. So far no foreclosure appears to have been filed, but they could only be 2 months late, if at all.
The nonsense we were told about some new rescue group buying the place and only wanted to focus on farmed animals seems pretty unlikely. There has been no sale of the property since 1999, so the same non profit who owned it then still owns it now and Diane's friends, who own big cats via Vanishing Species, and son are still the Directors of that non profit. Since Barbara Harrod still has big cats and thus has the necessary license to keep the bobcat and the tiger at either facility, it seems the real issue here is that Diane doesn't want to bother with the cats any more and neither does her son. It is not apparent that Growing Involvement for Teens serves any purpose other than as a non profit entity to hold the house and solicit funds. If they only raised 6000.00 last year, as their 2007 tax return said, it will only pay the mortgage for a couple of months before there is no income. This may be why the son is moving mom out and a tenant in. An incoming temant, rather than buyer, is another signal that this property and business has not been sold.
Meanwhile, Diane owns another house in the neighborhood at 10147 SW 87th Terrace Ocala, FL and her son Steve lists that address as his home address too. She co owns it with Jason and Stella Yates who she thanks on her Animal Rescue Kingdom web page for 5 years of service. They paid 42,500.00 for that house on 3/20/2001. It is up for sale now with a Realtor named David Harden 352.482.1822
There is no way to know if she received any insurance from the death of her husband Marc Zandman in January of 2008. He died of an unexpected heart attack at the age of 52 while visiting his sister in Atlanta. His MySpace page said he had been a cop. There is also no way to know what her hospitalization has cost her, and if that may be why she borrowed 300k on the house. It would be completely inappropriate to take that money for her personal use, but who would ever know given the lack of non profit oversight? By law you cannot shut down a non profit and keep the assets. They have to be donated to another non profit, but by borrowing all she could get out of the house and then walking away from it, she could thumb her nose at the law and count on the fact that they will not pursue such a little fish.
Under the circumstances, I think we should insist that Diane Zandman sign a letter saying she will never own another exotic cat on her own, or with any other group. Otherwise we are just enabling her to go out and get cubs she can use. Mary told us today that there have been a number of cubs who were brought to them by breeders for bottle raising and picked up by "zoos." Her website claims she has had lions, jaguars, cougars, bobcats and caracals to name just the cats. She claims to rescue them and send them to "forever homes." Just 3 months ago Diane was advertising tea cup poodle puppies for sale and it looked like more than half of the animals still in their care are pregnant.
None of this changes the fact that there is a bobcat in a tiny, barren, filthy, rain soaked cage and a tiger in a metal shed, on cold, wet, concrete floors, who has spent her entire six years there.
Note to FWC:
We have taken photos and videos of the deplorable situation there. The is not a USDA facility, but in the two visits we made there, people were constantly letting themselves in to feed the animals and there is nothing to keep people from sticking their fingers into the torn screen window where tiger resides. There is chain link there, but we were able to stick our hands in with no one noticing and most of the time, no one is there. Mary says the cat hasn't been out of the shed in three years. She has never had a cage that gave her sunshine, fresh air or access to walk on the earth. As for the bobcat, the cage was tied shut with a string. The water bowl was filled with feces and the cage floor is made of mulch that has been recently proven to kill pets. The only shelter was a carrier with a grated lid so there was nothing to keep the cat from being soaked. We tried to get Mary and Steve to release the bobcat to us that day, but they said we had to take the tiger too, and that is a huge financial commitment that we couldn't make at the time. We are trying to raise the funds now.
This has to stop. Your rules say people can't have tigers as pets. USDA says you can't exhibit wild cats unless you are licensed. This situation, like so many more, are examples of people playing the FWC against the USDA and circumventing the intent of your rules that would keep people from having tigers as back yard pets. There is no coordination between you, USDA, the IRS and the Department of Consumer Services when it comes to verifying that these entities are acting within the law. If you allow "sanctuaries" as this place touts itself, to escape USDA supervision or that of the public eye, you are just enabling more abuse.
For the cats,
Carole Baskin, CEO of Big Cat Rescue
Humane Society debates tiger Tony
By ASHLEY M. BAILEY
Advocate staff writer
Published: Jan 11, 2009 - Page: 2B - UPDATED: 12:05 am
PLAQUEMINE — The Humane Society of Louisiana held a special meeting Saturday to organize a new chapter in Iberville Parish, but the gathering also opened the way for more debate over the future of Tony, the 550-pound Siberian-Bengal tiger on exhibit at an Interstate 10 truck stop.
For eight years, Tony has been the main attraction at the Tiger Truck Stop in Grosse Tete. Animal welfare activists have been urging Tony’s owner, Michael Sandlin, to move the tiger to an animal sanctuary.
Sandlin has repeatedly defended his right to possess and exhibit the tiger, asserting it would be cruel to move it away from the only home it has ever known.
Representatives from both sides met at the Iberville Parish Library on Saturday afternoon for another round of discussion.
The meeting was hosted by Jeff Dorson, director of the Humane Society of Louisiana, with headquarters in New Orleans. He said he believes the opposing sides have more in common than they have differences.
Dorson said he had invited Sandlin to Saturday’s meeting to “establish a respectful rapport.” Sandlin did not attend the meeting, but he sent the truck stop’s manager, Penny Rivet, to represent him.
Rivet read a statement to the group reiterating Sandlin’s position on the future of Tony, but added that Sandlin would be open to suggestions on improving Tony’s living conditions.
“We are disappointed that legislators and the Fish and Wildlife council have given in to (activists) that think they know what is best for a tiger,” Rivet said. “He is a hand-raised pet accustomed to human love and affection.”
Rivet also said Sandlin would consider having an exotic animal expert determine Tony’s overall health and well-being.
“There’s a difference between people who just want to take Tony away from us and those who want to help us,” Rivet said.
The last time the two sides met was during an Iberville Parish Council meeting in December. The two sides engaged in a heated debate that led to some animal welfare activists being escorted to their vehicles by law enforcement officers.
Saturday’s discussion was decidedly more peaceful, with both Rivet and Dorson saying they were pleased to meet with one another.
“I thought it was very constructive. It opened up a dialogue, and they were very gracious,” Dorson said.
Last month, Sandlin sought a court injunction to prevent anyone from taking Tony away from the truck stop. A court hearing that had been set for Dec. 29 was postponed to allow the Iberville Parish Council time to consider amending a 1993 parish ordinance that bars private individuals from exhibiting dangerous, wild animals such as tigers.
If the council amends the law, it opens the door for Sandlin to continue keeping the tiger as a roadside attraction.
Sandlin could be forced to move the tiger if the council refuses, however, because he would not qualify for a permit from the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.
Both sides said Saturday they would be willing to meet again and discuss the issue further.
During the same meeting Saturday, Dorson and parish residents established a chapter of the Humane Society in Iberville Parish.
The Humane Society of Louisiana is a grassroots organization that is not affiliated with any national animal rights groups.
http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/37400069.html?showAll=y&c=y
U of M notebook
stukenborg@commercialappeal.com
Before the University of Memphis plays host to UCF Saturday at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium, TOM III will be introduced as the third Bengal Tiger mascot for the athletic program.
TOM III, born Aug. 31, was donated by the Wisconsin Big Cat Rescue & Educational Center in Rock Springs, Wis., and arrived in Memphis Oct. 23. Big Cat Rescue founders Jeff Kozlowski and Jenny Meyer contacted the Highland Hundred Tiger Guard upon learning of TOM II's death last month to offer one of three new Tiger cubs following an unexpected pregnancy. TOM II had served as the team mascot since 1991.
Scott Forman, who will be Tiger Guard Chairman for TOM III, said the Memphis group was ''fortunate to find this little guy so quickly.'' The Tiger Guard will assume all costs associated with maintaining TOM III. No U of M funds will be used.
On standby
Tiger junior college transfer running back Greg Ray, slowed earlier in the season by a hamstring injury, will work as the team's No. 3 running back this week behind freshman Brandon Ross and junior Brandon Washington if starter Curtis Steele is unable to play.
Steele, the team's leading rusher and C-USA's No. 2 rusher, injured his hamstring in the UofM's 31-26 victory over SMU Nov. 8 in Dallas and did not participate in practice last week. U of M was idle last weekend.
''I don't want to play Greg Ray, I have no intentions of playing him and ruining a redshirt year,'' Tiger coach Tommy West said. ''But if that's what we have to do, if something crazy happens, that's what we're going to do ... I'm going to do what I've got to do to win this game.''
Ray has been on the scout team since recovering from a hamstring injury that limited him during the preseason. Ray, 5-10 and 205 pounds, transferred to Memphis from El Camino (Calif.) Community College.
Off-and-on-and-off
West said while the team's second open date in three weeks allowed the team's injured players time to heal, he was mixed about having two so close together.
''Open dates are a little bit different at this time of year,'' West said. ''These open dates have been really good for us because of injuries, but they've also been kind of a negative because we were playing good. What I don't want is for this to break our momentum because we've been playing good.''
Memphis enters Saturday's game having won five of seven after an 0-3 start.
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/nov/18/tom-iii-to-debut-before-tigers-vs-ucf-game/
More about Wisconsin Big Cat Rescue & Educational Center:
http://reporter.911animalabuse.com/kickapps/service/searchEverything.kickAction?keywords=Kozlowski&includeVideo=on&includeAudio=on&includePhoto=on&includeBlog=on&includeUser=on&includeGroups=on&includeMessages=on&as=23072
10-27-08
Citizen Concern about the White Tiger exhibit by Zoo Dynamics (out of Texas) at the Neewollah event in Independence, KS in October, 2008
On Saturday, October 25th, 2008, while walking around downtown during Neewollah with my husband, we noticed signs that said “White Tigers” and had arrows to show where they were located. We went to the area only to see an exhibit set up in the middle of a crowded street behind a bright orange tarp. I heard one young lady come out saying…”Wow, we got sooo close. I got to feed them.” She added that she got her picture taken feeding them.
I was shocked. I knew that there were laws against public contact with exotic animals in Kansas since Governor Kathleen Sebelius signed SB 578 into law on April 17th, 2006. This law is very clear that there is to be “no public contact”. There are portions of this law that are specific to size and strength of cages, and outer safety barriers that are not to be reached through or gone around to get closer to the caged animal. These are specifically to prevent public contact thus further preventing a tragic accident of someone getting hurt or killed.
There are also sections of this law addressing having a microchip inserted in the animal for tracking purposes should one escape. This is to expedite relocating the animal. Other sections pertain to having a plan of action, should an escape or attack occur. Senator Umbarger was very instrumental in helping get this law into the legislative process after the death of our daughter Haley Hilderbrand…so that this could not happen again.
Needless to say, I paid $3.00 to get a closer look at what exactly was happening beyond the orange tarps. I asked about taking pictures and was told I could take all I wanted. I was very nervous to go in there, uncertain of what I would see, but knowing at the same time, I had an obligation and duty to find out. I have pictures showing close public contact, the poor cage and flimsy outer barrier.
There were two large, white tigers in a cage. One of them was lying down, squinting in the bright sun. The other was pacing back and forth. I was not unable to tell if this cage enclosure had a bottom; nor, how it was secured. I do know that the front outer barrier was only about 3, possibly 4 feet from the actual cage that the tigers were housed in. It was only about 3 feet tall. I do not believe this is what it should be, according to the law. The whole time I was in there, children and adults were leaning on and putting their legs through the outer barrier. It was flimsy and movable and could have easily been knocked over.
There was a lady with two little girls, about 6 to 8 years old. They were escorted to the West end of the cage. There, the outer barrier was barely one foot from the cage. The little girls were allowed to hold tongs that had a piece of (what looked like chicken) meat and reach over or through the outer barrier to reach into the cage to feed the tiger. And, no one was paying attention.
I was appalled….No one was paying attention…As the girls each reached sort of behind themselves, not looking where they were reaching the “handler” was looking through the camera to take the picture and the mother was also taking pictures…No one was paying attention to how far either child reached or “where” they were reaching for that matter.
At one point, the hungry tiger had his teeth around a couple of sections of the wire cage and his paw up there as well…and again, NO ONE WAS PAYING ATTENTION!
If the tiger had gotten a good grip on the tongs, or the girl reached a little too far…it would have been too late for the “handler” or the mom to react. These girls were small enough that most if not all of their arm would have been in the tigers’ mouth before anyone would have even known how it happened.
As addressed in an email from Mr. Ken Lockwood (a man very experienced with the care and exhibiting laws pertaining to big cats) “you can do this a thousand times and not have a problem, but the thousandth and one, it can happen.” Additionally, he says that there is NO NEED FOR PUBLIC CONTACT to teach the about big cats.
This particular tiger was pacing back and forth the whole time I was in there; which was approximately 20 minutes. I have seen on several web sites that teach about big cats that pacing is a sign of distress and anxiety for a tiger. He was also, I am sure, frustrated with the minimal, sporadic feeding he was getting.
My husband Randy and I went to inform the Independence Chief of Police, Ken Parker. Mr. Parker stated, “It’s a Neewollah thing.” We informed him about the Law. He basically said the same thing. He wasn’t going to do anything about it. We then called the Montgomery County Sheriff’s office. We were told an officer would call us back.
We saw a couple of police officers from Coffeyville, Mr. Vargas and Mr. Parker. We spoke to Mr. Vargas who told us to keep going up with the complaint (above the Independence Chief of Police)…That he could do nothing; it was out of his jurisdiction since he was from out of town. The Coffeyville officers were here during Neewollah to help keep law and order with the larger crowd. Is that the same response given if someone was being robbed!
After two hours, we called back to the Sheriffs’ office. They had Deputy Payne speak to us. He checked into our concern and said that the Independence City Attorney, Mr. Jeff Gettler, approved the exhibit. There wasn’t anything he could do about it. We told him about the laws in Kansas as well.
Not one of these gentlemen we spoke to knew anything about this law. Looks like they took the word of Zoo Dynamics representative (and I believe, owner) Marcus Cook, who has quite a questionable reputation at best. Even after we got a copy of the law and showed them, they did not seem interested in doing anything or looking into it any further. The law does state that “local law enforcement has authority…” None of the local law enforcement seemed interested in the LAW.
Somewhere along the line, we were told that this exhibit was approved or licensed. By whom? There were no licenses visibly posted so the public could see them (this is required by law). We were told this exhibit was part of a carnival or road show and was exempt from the law. No circus or carnival permit was visible either…Neither of these licenses or permits would allow public contact.
Well, as a concerned citizen, this only made my concerns greater…This is the biggest PASSING THE BUCK I have ever seen…..BOTTOM LINE….There is to be NO PUBLIC CONTACT… NO EXHIBIT is EXEMPT FROM that part of the law. If I understand anything about the law…especially as I followed this law taking effect, the STRICTEST LAW is what must be upheld…whether Federal, State or Local
PUBLIC WAS ALLOWED CONTACT BY FEEDING THE TIGERS
THERE WAS NOT ADEQUATE SECURE OUTER BARRIER
PUBLIC WAS ALLOWED PAST THE OUTER BARRIER
This terrifies me…the public is lead to believe that this type thing is SAFE…It is NOT.
I want to see this investigated. By all of these public service departments….Please do not pass the buck again…Mr. Gettler stated in an email to me that the Neewollah Board of Directors would have no further response because Neewollah is over and the exhibit is gone. Just because Neewollah is over does not mean the responsibility to shut down an illegal exhibit is…An exhibit he and the Neewollah Board of Directors allowed to be here…without knowing the laws that pertain to such an exhibit.
So, you didn’t know the law…Look it up, learn it and make sure it is upheld and not taken for granted again. I believe if you want to protect the reputation of Neewollah, it is the civic duty of each board member to look into this…Next time, it could be tragic.
This law of the State of Kansas is not the only entity governing what is allowed. There is the USDA, Wildlife and Parks, the Animal Welfare Act, the American Zoological Association. All of these have rules, regulations and guidelines; none of these is above state or local laws.
I understand that this group, Zoo Dynamics, call themselves a carnival or road show. Even these are not to allow public contact. Even these are to have proper cages and outer barriers in place so the public cannot get to the cage where the animals are housed.
As was suggested by Ms. Ann Crow, the President of Neewollah Board of Directors, perhaps she should have gone to see this White Tiger exhibit to see how close the public actually got. Perhaps she should have checkout the company Zoo Dynamics to see their reputation of name changes, animal attacks on the public and inhumane treatment of their animals.
I would like to see Zoo Dynamics license or permits to be a carnival or road show or whatever they call themselves now. I would like to see the license for the “handler(s)”. I believe this was offered by Mr.Gettler and Ms. Crow. I will make my fax number available.
There was near bragging in an email about how classy and legal the exhibits for Neewollah are. I do not believe that in the least. Not when something like this can occur a mere county away from where a young girl was killed by a tiger and where, as a result of that tragedy, there are laws in place that are not supposed to allow this.
Does Independence want Neewollah shut down because someone is attacked by a tiger!
Did the person(s) who approved this exhibit even look at the law pertaining to this? Did they actually see a license? Do they know they are to be USDA approved? Do you know the limits of USDA approval or license? Do you understand that even a license does not put an exhibitor above the law? These are questions that should get an answer.
Had the exhibit been checked out as suggested in emails from Neewollah President of the Board of Directors, Anne they would have seen for themselves that the public was allowed to be too close to these dangerous, wild animals.
Also suggested in an email from Marty Reichenberger, 2008 Generalissimo of Neewollah, that efforts be directed at a level where “something can actually be done”. That is exactly the intention of this letter of concern. As you can see, this letter is being sent to several groups who all have the ability to do something about this.
The problem is not the so called carnival…These type groups know the law, too and they know most folks don’t, so they find a way to worm around to get past the law. My hope is that those who do have the “ability to do something” about this will…
These laws are not to prevent big cats from being shown but to make sure they are shown regarding the safety of the animal and for the PROTECTION of the PUBLIC in the process.
This letter is not to prevent big cats from being show either, but to ensure it is done safely within the law. It is to shut down the ignorance of so many who profess to uphold the law, yet when it is right under their noses, refuse to do just that. And to make all aware that there are groups like Zoo Dynamics out there who seem to have all the “permits” and “licenses”, but that is not enough to ensure that they follow the law.
Thank you each and every one for taking the time to hear my concerns for the citizens of Montgomery County, Kansas, the United States and the whole world for that matter… I give permission for anyone who this letter reaches to pass it on to whomever they know who is involved with laws supporting protection of big cats and the public who wish to view them safely to PASS THIS ON…
Kindly,
Laura Hilderbrand
307 E. 10th Street
Coffeyville, KS 67337
620-251-9258
CC:
Honorable Governor of the State of Kansas, Kathleen Sebelius
US Senator Sam Brownback
US Senator Pat Roberts
US Representative Todd Tiahart
Senator Dwayne Umbarger
Representative Virgil Peck
US Department of Agriculture
Animal Welfare Association
International Fund for Animal Welfare
Ken Parker, Independence Chief of Police
Stan Veach, Montgomery County Sheriff
Jeff Gettler, Independence City Attorney
Ann Crow, President of the Board of Directors for Neewollah, Inc
Marty Reichenberger, 2008 Generalissimo of Neewollah, Inc
Deal In Place For Zoo's Offspring
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2008/oct/03/me-deal-in-place-for-zoos-offspring/#comments
The Tampa Tribune Published: October 3, 2008 Related
Links · http://media.tbo.com/assets/_shared/icons/video/video_16.gif
See The Report · By BAIRD HELGESON ·
TAMPA - Most of the animals that Lowry Park Zoo President Lex Salisbury has borrowed came with an agreement that he could keep some of the offspring, a top zoo official said Thursday. About 90 percent of the boarding or loan agreements stipulated that Salisbury and the zoo would split the newborns, said Larry Killmar, the zoo's director of collections. He said he would have to research how many offspring were produced. The zoo has loaned, borrowed, donated, traded or sold 201 animals to Salisbury in the past 21 years, said Killmar, who answered media questions after news reports about the volume of animal transactions between the zoo and its president. The zoo's dealings with Salisbury have included 39 species of animals, ranging from exotic birds and horses to an Arabian camel and rhinoceroses. The animals have been kept at Salisbury's private Dade City ranch or at Safari Wild, his private exotic-animal park that has yet to open. The number of animals and transactions between the zoo and Salisbury are a lot more than previously disclosed. Salisbury faces growing criticism that he has used the zoo's animals and resources to help launch Safari Wild. The zoo ended transfers to Salisbury this summer. Of those, 153 animal transactions directly benefit the zoo, such as when five bison were moved to Safari Wild to make way for a new flume ride, Killmar said. The others generally were instances when animals were sold or traded to Salisbury. A Common Practice It's common for zoos and other animal parks to have breeding agreements when they trade animals, Killmar said. Zoos regularly buy, loan or trade animals with one another, and the breeding agreements designate which organization gets offspring. Killmar characterized the zoo's animal transactions with Salisbury as minor compared to the 10,000 animals that have come and gone in the history of the zoo. The animal transactions between Salisbury and the zoo began when he was hired at the facility 21 years ago, Killmar said. The zoo boarded more than a dozen of Salisbury's exotic birds that were part of his master's degree research. The city agreed to let Salisbury board the birds at the zoo. Since 2006, the zoo documented 224 separate times in which animals were loaned out, boarded, traded, sold, donated or returned by Salisbury. Killmar said zoos commonly allow staff to keep or board animals, but he couldn't give an example of someone who had done so as routinely as Salisbury. Tiffany Sands, a spokeswoman for the Cincinnati Zoo, said staffers occasionally will be allowed to take home a sick frog or bird to care for the animal. The staffer usually cares for the animal only for a few days, and the animals are not exotic. The Indianapolis Zoo had a couple situations in recent years when it placed domestic animals, such as a dog or a cat, with staff or volunteers. The zoo has an ethics policy and conflict-of-interest rules that prohibit staffers who receive animals from being involved in a separate venture involving animals. "If there were ever a situation where a member of our staff would be perceived as financially benefiting from an animal transaction, that transaction would not be approved," said Paul Grayson, the Indianapolis Zoo's deputy director. Lowry Park Zoo generally uses its staff and equipment to transfer the animals since Safari Wild and Salisbury's private ranch are so close, Killmar said. If Salisbury has borrowed animals, he would pay for their food and care. If the zoo borrows an animal from Salisbury, the zoo pays for food and veterinary care. Trading Has Been Stopped The zoo and Salisbury stopped trading animals back and forth after the zoo's executive committee severed a cooperative agreement it had with Safari Wild. The executive committee made the decision in June after concerns arose about a potential conflict of interest. Salisbury has said he never profited from the arrangement. Mayor Pam Iorio sent a letter to the zoo in early September insisting that it end the relationship with Safari Wild and insisted that future animal transfers to private property be approved by the city. The city of Tampa's 1988 lease agreement with the Lowry Park Zoological Society stipulates that the city owns the animals and their offspring. Salisbury has said he wasn't aware of that part of the agreement until recent weeks. The zoo and Salisbury have returned nearly all of each other's animals. The zoo is paying $600 a month to board the bison at Safari Wild, still displaced by the flume ride.
The zoo needs to return two zebras to Salisbury, Killmar said. Zoo spokeswoman Rachel Nelson said Salisbury was tied up with auditors Thursday and not available for comment.
Reporter Baird Helgeson can be reached at (813) 259-7668 or bhelgeson@tampatrib.com.
Reader Comments Voice your opinion by posting a comment.
1 Posted by ( YankeejibReloaded ) on 10/03/2008 at 12:42 am. All parties involved are disgraceful. The zoo pays this Bozo while he uses city resources to build his competitive venture with animals he's taken? Which of the upstanding board members is going to put an end to this sham? Report Inappropriate Comments Posted by ( ZooAdvocate ) on 10/03/2008 at 06:40 am. Lex Salisbury continues to claim that he has never benefited from the hundreds of animal transactions that he conducted with the zoo. The U.S. government estimates the exotic animal trade in the U.S. to be $2 Billion industry annually. Tampa's Zoo Advocates is currently working to present specific information regarding the profit's associated with Lex Salisbury's animal transactions. Knowledge is Empowering. Warmest Regards, Jeff Kremer Tampa's Zoo Advocates www.TampasZooAdvocates.com Report Inappropriate Comments Posted by ( Elmo4Prez ) on 10/03/2008 at 08:01 am. I guess I have a question about whether the zoo had permission to complete any type of transaction when the city owns most of the animals? I doubt it, because politicians seem rarely to give up any sort of power Report Inappropriate Comments Posted by ( tampasimon ) on 10/03/2008 at 04:31 pm. Let's call a spade a spade. The zoo and Salisbury are joint venturing on a breeding facility and he's profiting from it - pure and simple. Rather ironic after they originally said they started sending animals to Lex because the animals needed a break and a place to roam since the zoo is overcrowded and displacing animals for rides. Just what we need then, more animals. Even more ironic that they have had 10,000 animals come and go through the zoo's doors. Whatever happened to zoos being run by compassionate organizations who were committed to the animals from cradle to grave? Oh, that's right, now it's just all about the money we can make off of them. It's time for every Tampa City Council member to demand an end to this regime at Lowry. Enough is enough!
Hold that tiger
Duluth News Tribune - 06/29/2008
If a wild animal exhibitor brings a couple of tigers to town, one of which is very pregnant, and sets up shop at a carnival where the female gives birth to four cubs that he displays publicly only to see them die the next day, should he be welcomed back?
How about if he made the trip last year after being socked with a lengthy complaint from the United States Department of Agriculture alleging Animal Welfare Act violations, as well as a $100,000 fine for fraud from the attorney general of Texas?
Well, sanctions or not, Marcus Cook and his Zoo Dynamics tiger show have been barnstorming the South and Midwest this year with the Mighty Thomas Carnival, which is preparing to set up shop in the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center parking lot this week. But hold your horses — or tigers — because this time, the carnies may be stripped of their stripes.
“I’m not sure if the tigers are coming with us or not,” Mighty Thomas co-owner Tom Atkins told the News Tribune ’s editorial page staff early last week, acknowledging that the big cat sideshow had been traveling with the carnival “for a couple of weeks.”
Atkins advised calling back later in the week. In the meantime, the office of Attorney General Greg Abbott of Texas, the state where Cook is based, had plenty to report.
“What name is he operating under today?” asked spokesman Charlie Castillo when the newspaper called to inquire about the status of the “Final Judgment and Agreed Permanent Injunction” signed by Cook and the attorney general’s office in February 2007. Asserting that Cook had fraudulently operated various nonprofit entities — ZooCats Inc., Zoo America, and the Kaufman County Humane Society, among others — the ruling enjoined him from ever again establishing a nonprofit in the state, as well as claiming any affiliation with Save the Tiger funds sponsored by Exxon and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.
With regard to dangerous animals, the judgme nt enjoined Cook from “misrepresenting or causing confusion ... as to Defendants’ safety record ... including representing that Defendants have a ‘perfect safety record.’”
It would appear that he does not. In 2005, a woman was bitten in the hand by a tiger cub Cook exhibited at a Florida auto dealership, the St. Petersburg Times reported. A year later, according to numerous news reports, one of Cook’s workers required 2,000 stitches after being mauled by a tiger that had escaped his Texas facility.
In Duluth last year, Cook dismissed the incident, telling the News Tribune the worker was trying to commit “suicide by tiger.” (The worker disputes his claim.) And Cook said the attorney general judgment — which would seemingly enjoin him from making suicide-by-tiger excuses regarding his safety record — wasn’t as severe as it sounded and the fine had been reduced.
Not quite. On Thursday, Texas attorney general spokesman Thomas Kelley gave an update. “Mr. Cook is mistaken,” he e-mailed. “Short answer: yes, the judgment still applies; no, he hasn’t complied with the judgment; and yes, the $100,000 is reinstated.”
It looks like Cook won’t soon be getting any ticket revenue in Duluth to pay down that debt. On Friday, the News Tribune editorial staff called Atkins of Mighty Thomas again to ask if the tigers were coming to town.
“They’re not,” he said, and hung up.
Cook did not respond to requests for comment. His lawyer, Bryan Sample, who also signed the Texas judgment, said of it: “There are ongoing matters that would be improper for me to make any comment.” As for the cause of the tiger cubs’ deaths last year — Cook reportedly sent their remains for a necropsy shortly after the incident — Sample said, “I really don’t know. I don’t believe any criminal charges or charges from the [United States Department of Agriculture] were brought against him or anyone else from the exhibit.”
He’s correct, but the USDA has ot her matters to discuss with Cook in a September hearing on its voluminous complaint against him.
For Duluth and Minnesota, the larger question is what state and local governments can do to control wild animal exhibits gone wrong. A state law passed in 2004 requires residents who own dangerous animals to register them with their counties, but is mum about visiting exhibitors. As for Duluth, city spokesman Jeff Papas was in the process of researching relevant ordinances on Friday when told Cook probably wasn’t coming to town.
“That might solve the whole issue completely,” he said.
Maybe this time, but not completely.
You can have your picture taken with 2 baby tigers for $18.
"Only cats 18-months-old and younger are part of the shows. After that, they are retired to the wildlife preserve." Great Cat Adventures: http://www.greatcatadventures.com/
The only big cat preserve I could find in Atoka, Okla.: http://www.oklahomawildlifepreserve.org/
#### 'Cat'ch the new event at Papillion Days By: Bethany Fischer, Times Staff Writer 06/11/2008 Updated 06/11/2008 03:49:20 PM EDT
Members of the community will have an opportunity to get close to some wild cats at Papillion Days. The Great Cat Adventures, a traveling show that takes wild cats to festivals across the nation, is coming to the event, June 12 through 15. Its motto is "preservation through education and entertainment," and funding comes from booking shows, said Rachael Cascio, executive director of the Papillion Community Foundation. The Great Cat Adventures has a nonprofit wildlife rescue in Atoka, Okla., where the cats, many from abusive homes, can live in safety, according to www.greatcatadventures.com. Only cats 18-months-old and younger are part of the shows. After that, they are retired to the wildlife preserve. People will be able to see a royal white Bengal tiger, Bengal tiger, black leopard, spotted leopard, cougar, African serval and two baby tigers. In addition, those who would like to can get their pictures taken with the two baby tigers for $18. Cascio assured the public that the Papillion Community Foundation's and City of Papillion's first concern is safety. All of the cats will be in cages underneath tents with fencing. Due to safety, no parking will be allowed in the City Park parking lot. The Great Cat Adventures will be west of City Park and people can easily walk right from the vendors to the cats, Cascio said.
http://www.newswaverly.com/site/tab6 .cfm? newsid=19765813&BRD=2712& AG=461&dept_id=557008&rfi=6
Note: The Wildlife Preserve, as they call it has not been built and isn't scheduled to be built until 2009. Their plan to use baby big cats and then warehouse them should not be condoned. The people who claim on the website to be behind this are:
Wayne Edwards, Scott Fairley and Jeff Lathan
Wed, May 21 2008
— By Jeff Lehr
jlehr@joplinglobe.com
NEOSHO, Mo. — A Newton County deputy shot and killed a large, black
cat of uncertain species Monday morning when the animal, either a
leopard or a jaguar, charged him.
Capt. Richard Leavens of the Newton County Sheriff's Department said
Vickie Sanders, 61, called shortly after 6 a.m. Monday to report what
she took to be "a black panther" at the door of her home at 9555
Orchid Drive, southwest of Neosho.
When Cpl. Donn Hall of the Sheriff's Department arrived, he spotted a
large, black cat standing on its hind legs and pawing at a storm door
of the home.
"When he got out of his car, it charged him," Leavens said. "He fired
on it and wounded it. It ran past him to the end of the driveway and
then came back at him."
Hall left his patrol car with a shotgun and fired two shots on the
cat's initial charge, Leavens said. As the cat charged a second time,
Hall fired additional shotgun blasts and then pulled his .45-caliber
Glock handgun, he said.
"It took several shots with that to get one that took effect,"
Leavens said.
Hall escaped any injury from the cat, as did Sanders and her dogs,
Leavens said.
Sanders had been hanging some laundry on a clothesline in her yard
when the cat appeared and started toward her, Leavens said. She told
the Sheriff's Department that one of her dogs "intercepted" the cat,
allowing her time to get inside her home along with her dogs.
The cat then began pawing on the door of the home and kept it up
until Hall arrived, Leavens said.
A state Conservation Department officer was called to the scene after
the animal was killed. While the species of the animal was not
immediately certain, the suspicion was that it was not accustomed to
living in the wild.
"This most likely was a kept animal that either had been dumped out
or had gotten away," Leavens said.
He said officers could see, after it had been killed, that its claws
had been surgically removed.
He said there has been some speculation that the cat might have been
on the loose in the wake of the recent tornado damage in the region.
The animal's body was taken to Scott's Taxidermy in Newton County.
James Dixon, a wildlife damage biologist with the Missouri Department
of Conservation office in Springfield, went there to take a look at
it late Tuesday afternoon.
"We're going to have to do some further research to tell exactly what
it is," Dixon told the Globe after his initial look. "It's either a
leopard or a jaguar."
Leopards are native to both Africa and Asia, with black leopards
found in Africa. Jaguars are indigenous to South America, Central
America and certain parts of the southwestern United States. But
black jaguars are practically unheard of in the United States.
"When you look at it very closely, you can see spots," Dixon said of
the animal that was killed.
He said it will require some skull and teeth measurements to
ascertain the species. Tissue samples could be taken if those
measurements are not conclusive, he said.
The fatal shot appeared to have been a round from the Glock that
struck the cat in the chest, Dixon said.
Even the weight of the animal remained uncertain Tuesday. The
Sheriff's Department had estimated it at 50 to 60 pounds, the
taxidermist at 40 pounds. Dixon said the animal appeared to have been
well-fed, even fat, perhaps from having been kept in a cage. But its
stomach seemed empty, which might explain its behavior, he said.
"He could have just been coming around looking for a handout," Dixon
said. "Who knows what it was thinking? But that's pretty odd
behavior."
Jaguars and leopards are seldom seen in the wild because they sense
humans long before humans see them and usually have no interest,
Dixon said. He said the Department of Conservation does not regulate
either leopards or jaguars because neither is deemed a species
indigenous to Missouri.
"I guess the important thing about this from a conservation
standpoint is that people should know there is not a population of
large, black cats wreaking havoc across southern Missouri," he said.
Registration
Large cats are required to be registered with sheriff's departments
in Missouri, but this cat was not registered with the Newton County
Sheriff's Department, Capt. Richard Leavens said.
http://www.joplinglobe.com/neosho_ newton_mcdonald%
20county/local_story_141225251
.html?keywo rd=secondarystory
How some of America's best zoos get rid of their old, infirm, and unwanted animals
By Michael SatchellDeep amid the weeds and trash alongside Interstate 35, rusty cages and flimsy wire enclosures hold what's left of a former roadside zoo: six primates, three or four New Guinea singing dogs, a few exotic birds, and several African meerkats. The saddest residents are two rare white-handed gibbons, small apes listed as an endangered species. But the male-female pair is imperiled for another reason. They are the neglected castoffs from one of the nation's top wildlife institutions, the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse, N.Y.
The two gibbons were discovered by a reporter one recent broiling day in a filthy cage with no water and a few scraps of rotten fruit. Their plight points to a little-known practice by some of the nation's premier zoos: dumping surplus, old, or infirm animals into a vast, poorly regulated-and often highly profitable-network of substandard, "roadside" zoos and wildlife dealers who supply hunting ranches and the exotic-pet trade.
Though these small zoos, along with traveling circuses and other animal shows, are licensed and inspected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, their inhabitants often exist in cramped compounds and tiny cages with poor protection from the elements, marginal food, and spotty veterinary care. They typically get little psychological enrichment beyond a tire swing, a plastic ball, and a few dead tree branches. Half crazy from boredom and lack of exercise, the highly social primates and cooped-up predators often mutilate themselves and spend hours pacing to and fro and biting the bars of their cages. With summer in full swing and people staying closer to home, Americans are flocking to the nation's big zoos. There are 205 such facilities accredited by the American Zoo and Aquarium Association, and they attract some 135 million people a year - 6 million more than attend major-league sporting events. Most of these zoos provide spacious natural habitats and expert care. But when animals begin to age and become less attractive, and curators have to make room for the spring crop of new babies, many big zoos give the old-timers the bum's rush. "Dumping animals," says Richard Farinato, head of captive wildlife protection for the Humane Society of the United States, "is the big, respectable zoos' dirty little secret."
Zoos accredited by the AZA must abide by a code of ethics restricting animal transfers to other AZA members or to unaccredited zoos with the "expertise, records management capabilities, financial stability, and facilities required to properly care" for the animals. But a U.S. News investigation found that even some of the nation's most highly regarded zoos violate those mandates through transfers, sales, and loans of exotic animals to substandard zoos and to private animal breeders and dealers.
The magazine's inquiry is based on an examination of the tightly restricted, interzoo International Species Information System database, which tracks transfers of 129 species of mammals, as well as interviews with dozens of state and federal regulators, zoo employees, and animal welfare activists. Records show that some leading AZA members-including zoos in Washington, D.C.; the Bronx; San Diego; Honolulu; Memphis; Atlanta; Denver; Santa Barbara, Calif.; Buffalo; Phoenix; Montgomery, Ala.; and Kansas City, Mo.-have shipped mammals and exotic birds to roadside zoos that were below AZA standards. Some have also provided animals to dealers who reportedly sell to private hunting ranches, animal auctions, and exotic-pet owners.
Besides the AZA rules, a 1966 law passed by Congress specifies care, feeding, and other requirements for the treatment of exotic animals and mandates that the Department of Agriculture enforce the statute. But a reporter and photographer who visited more than two dozen small zoos around the nation found a pattern of callous treatment and government neglect. Some examples: Four big cats died after the USDA recommended their owner place his two cougars, four tigers, two adult lions, and a young lion in Don and Dee's Exotic Zoo, a roadside facility in Manson, Iowa. The cougars died, apparently from malnutrition, and Steven Bellin, a USDA veterinarian, then inspected the zoo in November 2000. U.S. News obtained copies of Bellin's inspection reports and correspondence. "All but the young lion are on concrete flooring without bedding materials of any sort," Bellin wrote. "Ambient temperature was approximately 35 degrees. . . . There was no food on the premises for the large cats. . . . [Water bowls] were filled with either frozen or brackish water, carcass materials, and/or debris. Housing arrangements, lighting, and sanitation fail to meet the minimal federal standards. All seven of the large cats . . . appear thin/gaunt and somewhat emaciated. The female African lion recently failed to eat for three days. This animal might die if not treated."
Bellin gave the zoo owners six weeks to improve conditions. He apparently did not seek emergency removal of the animals or try to have the zoo closed down. A few days after his inspection, the female lion killed and ate the male. A male Bengal tiger also died after splintered turkey bones punctured its intestinal tract because it had no drinking water to flush them through its system. Before it expired, the tiger chewed its metal water bowl to pieces. "I believe [the bowl] that was torn apart . . . was a response by the animal to the deep, agonal pain [caused] by the tissue-penetrating bones," Bellin wrote. "I believe that the tiger was starving . . . and died in severe pain in the cold without a shelter or bedding." The USDA fined Don and Dee's $500 and revoked its license. The local county attorney, Ann Beneke, sought to prosecute the owners on cruelty charges but was forced to drop the case when the USDA refused to allow Bellin to testify. He failed to respond to a U.S. News interview request.
Before it failed financially, the New Braunfels Zoo obtained exotic mammals and birds from several AZA zoos, including the Bronx, Washington National, San Diego, Honolulu, Buffalo, and Santa Barbara. In November 2000, eight months after one of the zoo's two owners says he quit in disgust at the animal neglect and other deteriorating conditions, it received the two white-handed gibbons from Syracuse's Rosamond Gifford Zoo. "They would have a good home and be well taken care of in a warmer climate," Anne Baker, the zoo's executive director, said in explaining the transfer. "We got two AZA references, and New Braunfels described their animal collection, their staff, and veterinary resources. We would assume there is a level of honesty."
There wasn't. And Baker could have easily discovered the fact. A local U.S. Agriculture Department inspector, Elizabeth Pannill, had begun documenting many of the problems at New Braunfels and eventually filed seven detailed inspection reports. When a reporter told Baker about the declining conditions at the zoo, including the principal owner's selling loaned birds and mammals without permission, Baker replied that she had checked with Pannill and was assured that the gibbons were in good condition.The reporter told Baker he would visit the long-closed zoo and report back to her. "I'll be anxious to hear what you find," she said. "I'm concerned." After finding the gibbons in their filthy cage, the reporter left two telephone messages for Baker. She failed to return the calls. Pannill, the USDA inspector, was forbidden by superiors to discuss the matter, but U.S. News obtained copies of several of her E-mails. "The curator [Baker] that sent the gibbons to NBZ knows the situation out there," Pannill wrote. ". . . I have even suggested she might want to relocate them . . . [and] also told the curator of my concerns and problems. She told me they had been given to NBZ . . . so they would NOT take back. I really wonder why zoos don't ask for a copy of the last USDA report before they send animals out."
Baker is the current chairman of the AZA's animal welfare committee and is scheduled to become the organization's vice president next year and to lead the organization in 2004. When she was finally reached on the New Braunfels matter, she said: "This was a bad call on my part; I will readily admit that." At the AZA-accredited Phoenix Zoo, director Jeff Williamson required non-AZA zoos and dealers to sign an agreement that his animals and their offspring would not end up "in animal auctions, canned hunts, the pet trade, invasive biomedical research, or any other situation contrary to the AZA code of ethics." In November 2000, Williamson sold 17 male ibexes-an exotic goat popular with trophy hunters-to a Texas wildlife dealer and breeder who reportedly supplies animals to hunting ranches. After U.S. News asked Williamson if he had ever checked on his ibexes, he made several attempts to reach the dealer and says his calls were ignored.
After several weeks, Williamson finally received a telephone message saying the ibexes were alive, but he has been unable to verify that. The experience has moved him to change the Phoenix Zoo policy. In future, no animals will be shipped to nonaccredited zoos or any dealers, and all old or surplus animals will be retired under the zoo's jurisdiction. Says Williamson: "We are not going to get ourselves into this situation again."AZA Executive Director Sydney Butler acknowledges that member zoos have violated the ethics code in the past. "I don't think it happens anymore," he says. "People will know about these things. If it does happen, it's an innocent transaction."
U.S. News showed Butler a series of American Association of Zoo Veterinarians inspection certificates that document AZA zoos' shipping of mammals and exotic birds to roadside zoos that fall below AZA standards and to dealers who reportedly supply animals to the exotic animal underground. Butler replied: "We always try to improve." Even leading AZA members acknowledge the organization has done a poor job of enforcing its animal-transfer code. "Reputable zoos have written policies saying animals won't go to anything other than an AZA institution," says Ron Kagan, director of the Detroit Zoological Institute. "Numerous animals born in our institutions have . . . ended up in circuses, breeders, or private hands. We can't undo the past, but we can be a part of the solution."
The inherent weakness of allowing non-AZA disposal of surplus animals, as the Syracuse zoo's Anne Baker learned, is that a great deal must be taken on faith. Some 2,500 roadside menageries, safari parks, circuses, breeders, dealers, and other exhibitors are licensed and inspected by the USDA. But weak federal regulations and a crazy-quilt pattern of local and state wildlife laws leave only a thin skein of protection for the animals. Virtually anyone can obtain a permit to exhibit, breed, and sell exotics; no qualifications are required.
Slap on the wrist: Commercial animal exhibitors, dealers, breeders, and biomedical testing labs are governed by the 1966 Animal Welfare Act. The law sets minimal standards for food storage, housing, and veterinary care. It has no cruelty statute, has weak enforcement provisions, and provides for only token fines. On the critical issue of cage size, the law stipulates only that animals must have enough room to stand, turn around, and maintain a normal posture, making it perfectly legal to keep a chimp in a broom closet or a lion in a cage the size of a powder room. For years, leading animal welfare organizations have lobbied Congress for more humane standards and tougher enforcement. "There's no aggressive investigation and no consistent follow-up," complains Cindy Carroccio, director of the Austin Zoo, an accredited sanctuary that houses unwanted or confiscated exotics. "They're scared of litigation, they don't allow their inspectors to testify even in the worst cruelty cases, and they refuse to close the bad places down."Often, it's not just a matter of will but of bodies. Last year, the USDA had fewer than 100 inspectors to keep tabs on about 9,000 licensed facilities from zoos to animal testing labs. In some years, the number of USDA inspectors has fallen as low as 64.
However much the numbers fluctuate from year to year, the agency's inspectors have not exactly established a reputation for rigorous enforcement. The department does not record the number of animals it has seized or zoos it has shut down. A USDA spokesman recalled five confiscations since 1997 in the western United States involving exotic animals in roadside zoos, and just one since 1995 in the eastern region. That's about one a year, nationwide. "We are not in the business of putting people out of business," says Daniel Jones, who supervises USDA animal inspections in three states. "The courts look at it as putting a man out of his livelihood." Evidently, higher-ups at the Agriculture Department see little problem with any of this. Chester Gipson, the USDA's deputy administrator of animal-care services, declined a request by U.S. News to discuss the inspections process. His predecessor, Ron DeHaven, blamed "radical animal-rights groups" for exaggerating concerns about inadequate or abusive care of exotic animals. "We have taken very stringent enforcement actions against roadside zoos, [but] we can't be at every facility every day," he says. "It was never the intent of Congress to establish conditions [for appropriate animal care]; and for me to comment on the law is inappropriate and counterproductive to the way our system works."
Auction block: The way the system works would make many of the moms and dads and their bright-eyed charges who so enjoy a trip to the local zoo blanch. In some cases, animals from big zoos pass through places like the Lolli Brothers exotic animal auction in Macon, Mo., reputedly the biggest of its kind in the United States. At the recent May sale, the action was fast and furious with a veritable Noah's ark collection-monkeys, zebras, camels, wildebeest, ostriches, kangaroos, Russian boars, giant tortoises, parrots, peacocks, even boa constrictors-hustled through the auction ring. A 12-year-old female chimp drew a bid of $10,500, a cuddly 3-month-old lion cub raised just $800, and a baby wallaby went for $1,200. For three days, the auctioneer's gavel rose and fell. At the final hammer, the sale grossed more than $1.5 million. Altogether, 3,225 animals were hauled away by new owners from as far away as Canada, Florida, California, and Mexico to a new and likely grim existence in the exotic underground. Sometimes, as the New Braunfels case shows, AZA zoos dispense with the fig leaf of a middleman and dump surplus animals directly into unaccredited zoos through breeding "loans" or donations. There are hundreds of these substandard roadside menageries nationwide, mostly run by owners with scant knowledge of the animals' natural behavior or needs. Rescued animals housed by accredited wildlife sanctuaries in Austin and San Antonio provide stark examples of abusive conditions in the exotic-animal underground. Molly, a guard lion chained up for years in a Dallas drug dealer's house, has put on over 100 pounds in her new home. When another lion named Nayla wasn't lying down with a lamb at a biblically themed traveling circus, it spent its life squeezed into a 4-by-8-foot cage. Carnivores of every kind hobble painfully around their spacious compounds, victims of leg-breaking metabolic bone disease caused by the cheap, all-poultry diets fed to them by exotic-pet owners and roadside zoos. Monkeys and apes are missing tails and limbs. Some have torn out hunks of fur in fits of self-mutilation brought on by years of close or solitary confinement. Roadside zoos often operate on thin profit margins. But some raise money-and gain the imprimatur of legitimacy-by declaring themselves "sanctuaries" or "preserves," obtaining 501c (3) nonprofit status from the Internal Revenue Service and soliciting public donations to "save an endangered species." The nation's 60 or more legitimate, accredited sanctuaries don't breed or sell animals, but these other so-called pseudosanctuaries allow their wildlife to mate and then sell the offspring or add to their collections-often exacerbating the substandard care.
Tax-exempt "preserves": Noah's Land Wildlife Park in Harwood, Texas, currently under USDA investigation, calls itself a sanctuary, enjoys tax-exempt status, and solicits donations. When Cheri Watson took over in 1998, Noah's Land was in bad shape. Watson lacked the money-and enough paying customers-to improve things. She gained nonprofit designation in May 2000, but conditions aren't much better. "We took in way too many animals," she says, "including four tigers that had been kept in a two-horse trailer for six months [that was] never cleaned out." Watson allowed her cats to breed. Within two years, Noah's Land produced 26 new tiger cubs, infuriating regional accredited sanctuaries already swamped with unwanted Bengals. America now has an estimated 10,000 or more generic tigers in roadside zoos and backyard cages, virtually all of them mutts with no conservation value and often suffering painful physical defects from inbreeding.The 275-acre Noah's Land has 48 big cats, six bears, several primates, between 200 and 300 exotic deer and antelopes, and scores of feral pigs that are fed to the predators. Some of the caged animals exist in grim squalor, including cell-like cinderblock cages, but Watson rejects offers by legitimate sanctuaries to take them. "We're still having growing pains," she says. "We haven't got a foothold on the fundraising yet, but we will improve."
Another pseudosanctuary was run by Joan Byron-Marasek. For more than 20 years, she kept up to two dozen tigers in a private, tax-exempt "preserve" behind her home in central New Jersey. "I feel it's my mission to save these animals from extinction," she says. "I know I'm doing it better than any other place." Hardly. In 1999, after one of her cats escaped and terrified the neighborhood, authorities brought in a Bronx Zoo curator to evaluate her Tigers Only Preserve. He declared it the "worst facility that I have ever seen," with malnourished tigers, rotting deer carcasses, and rats everywhere. The state quickly moved to shut her down, and Byron-Marasek finally lost her three-year legal battle in May. Her 24 tigers are now headed to the Wild Animal Orphanage, an accredited sanctuary in San Antonio.
Those are the lucky ones. In May, seven men were indicted in Chicago for killing 17 tigers and one leopard to sell their skulls, hides, meat, and other body parts, which can bring $10,000 or more per animal. Six tigers and one leopard were rescued. Big cats are now so common in the United States-there may be more pet tigers in Texas alone than survive in the wild worldwide-that cubs can be purchased for a few hundred dollars, and adult tigers are virtually worthless. Alive, that is. There's no ready solution to the problems, but some zoo officials say that for starters, AZA-accredited zoos should take greater responsibility for assuring the lifelong welfare of their charges. "Any animal that devotes its life to being an ambassador for its own kind-even against its will-is owed a decent retirement," says Terry Maple, director of Zoo Atlanta and a former AZA president. "Zoo animals are held in trust to the service of humanity, and we shouldn't banish them to a terrible fate just because they have outlived their usefulness."
Wash your hands: Petting zoos -- A random survey of a Pennsylvania petting zoo by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta found 51 visitors, mostly children, contracted potentially fatal E. coli 0157:H7 over a three-month period in 2000. Symptoms included bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting. One 3-year-old nearly died after losing both kidneys and 80 percent of her colon and large intestine. Other zoo-related outbreaks caused by petting feces-covered animals have been tracked in Ohio, Washington State, Wisconsin, Ontario, and the United Kingdom.
Source: staff myREBAdog@att.net (Lisa Marie)
Check for yourself to see if they meet the sanctuary standards for an accredited animal refuge. See an interactive online map of exotic cat owners . See people being stupid with big cats, endangering themselves and others HERE . See the awful conditions that many captive cats endure HERE .
USDA report HERE
John Cuneo giving away elephants and tigers
Elephants to leave McHenry County farm
Captive Wild Animal Protection Coalition http://www.chicagotribune.com/news /local/chi-040308elephants,1,1393532.story?coll=ch i-news-hed
Elephants to leave McHenry County farm
Elephants need new home (Tribune file photo)
March 8, 2004
Stories
Animal trainer faces hearing
March 8, 2004
By Jeff Long
Tribune staff reporter
Published March 8, 2004, 2:52 PM CST
The owner of a circus-training facility in rural McHenry County has agreed to find new homes for his elephants under an agreement with federal authorities, officials announced today.
The proposed agreement between John Cuneo, owner of Hawthorn Corp., and the U.S. Department of Agriculture would end the government's case against Cuneo and his company for dozens of alleged violations of the Animal Welfare Act concerning the elephants' care.
A USDA administrative law judge still must approve the settlement.
"( Cuneo ) will cooperate with the USDA in finding a new home for the elephants," said David Weintraub, a spokesman for Cuneo .
A hearing on the charges had been scheduled to begin today before an agency law judge in Washington D.C. That case proceeded today against one of the original defendants in the case, James G. Zajicek of Mesa , Ariz. , a trainer used by Cuneo .
While the charges against Cuneo and other defendants have not yet been dropped, USDA spokesman Jim Rogers said settlements either have been reached or are in the works. Those portions of the case are not proceeding in court.
Cuneo could not be reached for comment. He said last year he had 19 elephants at his farm near Richmond , along with a lion and 84 tigers.
Since then, at least one of the elephants has been seized by the USDA, which said poor health put the animal, Delhi , in "imminent danger."
Weintraub said Cuneo plans to give the elephants away rather than sell them. A decision on where they will go, the spokesman added, will be made after a judge approves the agreement with the USDA.
Neither Weintraub nor a USDA spokesman could say when a judge may rule nor when the elephants may leave the McHenry County farm.
Cuneo 's training facility will remain open, Weintraub said. The government's case did not affect the lion or the tigers.
Hawthorn's animals have performed in circuses across the U.S. and around the world. But in the last 10 years, the entity has become a target of USDA investigations and protests by animal rights groups alleging animal cruelty.
2004 Chicago Tribune
9819 N. Solon Rd.
Richmond, IL 60071
USDA License #33-C-0053
Hawthorn Corporation has failed to meet minimal federal standards for the care of animals used in exhibition as established in the Animal Welfare Act (AWA). The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has cited Hawthorn Corporation numerous times for failure to provide veterinary care, adequate shelter from the elements, and proper food and water, as well as failure to handle animals in a manner that prevents trauma and harm and ensures public safety. Hawthorn has accumulated $72,500 in USDA penalties and has twice had its license suspended. Four of Hawthorn's elephants died from a human strain of tuberculosis. In January 1997, Hawthorn's herd of 18 elephants was restricted from traveling during tuberculosis treatment. Hawthorn's elephants have rampaged, causing death, injury, and property damage. Hawthorn leases animals to facilities and circuses around the world, including Jordan World Circus, Circus Vargas, Shrine Circuses, Walker Bros. Circus, Royal Palace Circus, George Carden Circus, Hanneford Circus, Hamid Circus, Alain Zerbini, and Tarzan Zerbini. Contact PETA for documentation.
March 12, 2004: According to a consent decision, John Cuneo, president of Hawthorn Corporation, admitted to 19 violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act in order to settle charges filed by the USDA in April 2003. Cuneo was ordered to relinquish custody of 16 elephants to USDA-approved facilities and to pay a $200,000 fine
November 22, 2003: The USDA seized an elephant named Delhi from Hawthorn and transferred her to The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee after determining that she was in imminent danger from lack of veterinary care. Delhi had been suffering from abscesses, lesions, and severe chemical burns to her feet and was covered with scars. She was originally captured in India and acquired by Hawthorn in 1974. This was the first elephant confiscation in U.S. history.
April 9, 2003: The USDA filed charges against Hawthorn Corporation, several Hawthorn employees, and Walker Bros. Circus, which used Hawthorn's elephants. The complaint alleges 47 violations of the minimum standards of care established in the Animal Welfare Act that affected 12 elephants between March 29, 2001, and June 1, 2002. Charges include using physical abuse to train, handle, and work an elephant, causing physical harm and discomfort, failing to provide veterinary care to an emaciated elephant, failure to provide veterinary care to an elephant suffering with severe chemical burns and a bacterial infection, failure to provide veterinary care to several elephants with potentially deadly foot problems, and unsafe public contact.
March 5, 2003: According to The Edmonton Sun , a local Shrine Circus announced that it will no longer use animals from Hawthorn.
October 19, 2002: According to The Virginian-Pilot , an elephant handler with Sterling & Reid, David Creech, was convicted on three counts of animal cruelty (see September 4-5, 2002) and fined $200 on each count. The judge acquitted Creech, a Hawthorn employee, of a fourth count, which alleged that he struck an elephant over the head with a bullhook, because it was unclear from the eyewitness account which elephant trainer committed the act.
September 4-5, 2002: According to The Virginian-Pilot , an elephant handler with Sterling & Reid, David Creech, was charged with four counts of animal cruelty for beating an elephant until her hide was bloody while performing at the Norfolk Scope on August 23. The article stated, "An investigation by the officer and an outside veterinarian determined that the elephant suffered multiple lacerations."
The circus is leasing its elephant act from Hawthorn. Another elephant handler, James Zajicek, a Hawthorn employee, was arrested and charged with obstructing justice.
June 1, 2002: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide adequate veterinary treatment to three elephants held in the protected contact area and in need of foot care to prevent potentially deadly foot problems. Hawthorn was also cited for failure to correct a previously identified violation of not providing diagnostic test results for a dead lion and a dead tiger.
The inspector noted that 13 white tigers had been kept in transport cages since April 23, 2002, which failed to comply with minimum space requirements.
Lota was reported to weigh 7,200 pounds. The expert elephant veterinary consultant had determined that Lota should not be sent back on the road before reaching a weight of 7,400 pounds.
May 24, 2002: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide adequate veterinary care to the African elephants with hard, dry, cracked skin on the back, ears, and head and overgrown nails and cuticles, which can lead to potentially deadly foot problems. Hawthorn was also cited for failure to provide minimum space to its tigers and for allowing unauthorized persons near the tiger cages without a handler present.
May 16, 2002: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide adequate veterinary treatment to the elephants in the protected contact area and in need of foot care and for failure to provide diagnostic test results for a dead lion and a dead tiger.
May 4, 2002: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide adequate veterinary care to its elephants. The inspector wrote, "The owner of the Hawthorn Corporation failed to obtain the services ... of an expert elephant veterinarian ... as required. ... [The USDA] acquired the services of an expert elephant veterinary consultant who examined Delhi on this date." The USDA's elephant veterinary consultant found that Delhi had numerous lesions, a swollen tail, swollen front feet with skin damage and abscess blow-outs, abscess defects on the foot pads, and a huge split nail. The consultant recommended twice-daily foot soaks, weekly foot trims, monthly weight checks, oral medications, keeping detailed medical records, providing care for skin wounds, and allowing Delhi to go outside.
The veterinary consultant examined Lota and stated that she should not go on the road until she gained an additional 500 pounds and that the four elephants in the protected contact area--Frieda, Sue, Billy, and Nicholas--had nails and/or cuticles that required trimming.
April 23, 2002: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide veterinary care and for causing behavioral stress, physical harm, and unnecessary discomfort to an elephant named Delhi who had severe tissue damage to the front feet and several abscessed areas on her body, including areas on both hips, between the eyes, the anterior portion of the ear attachment, on her head, the elbows of both front legs, and the tail. Chemical burns on Delhi's feet were the result of the use by trainer John Caudill III--who was later fired--of undiluted formaldehyde to soak Delhi's feet. On March 4, 2002, Delhi was found "in a serious health emergency." Both of her front legs were twice their normal size and were swollen up to her chest. She could not bend her front legs at the elbows, was reluctant to bear weight on her front legs, and had difficulty in walking. The attending veterinarian did not respond in a timely manner. The inspector wrote, "The attending veterinarian cannot wait for two to three days before going to the premises to evaluate an acutely ill animal." The USDA determined that a USDA-chosen expert elephant veterinarian was needed to evaluate Delhi's condition.
The USDA also cited Hawthorn for failure to provide diagnostic records, treatment records, and necropsy reports for a tiger named Java and a lion named Bunda, failure to provide minimum space to 14 white tigers living in transport cages, and failure to have a sufficient number of adequately trained employees.
February 22, 2002: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to properly clean and sanitize the elephants' transport trailer.
January 2, 2002: According to a USDA letter, Hawthorn had been notified that elephants Debbie and Judy were prohibited from exhibition involving potential public contact following the October 2001 rampage in Charlotte, N.C.
December 19, 2001: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to maintain an elephant transport trailer in a manner to prevent injury to the animals.
October 27, 2001: Two Hawthorn elephants named Debbie and Judy rampaged at the Word of Life Church in Charlotte, N.C. Two church members were nearly trampled, and children had to be quickly ushered to safety. The elephants crashed into the church through a glass window, broke and buckled walls and door frames, and knocked a car 15 feet, causing an estimated $75,000 in damages. The elephants suffered cuts and bruises. Debbie had rampaged twice before with an elephant named Frieda while she was with the Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros. Circus. In May 1995, she smashed windows, dented cars, and crashed through a plate-glass window at a Sears Auto Center in Hanover, Pa., causing $20,000 in property damage. In July 1995, Debbie bolted from the circus tent in Queens, N.Y., crushing parked cars and triggering a panic that left 12 people injured.
October 11-15, 2001: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to correct previously identified violations of not providing veterinary care and not maintaining facilities.
An elephant named Lota had been returned to the Illinois compound two months earlier in an emaciated state, with a lump on her left hip . The property manager and trainer stated that they had never seen Lota so thin. The lump had expanded into a large, painful, fluid-filled abscess that extended down to her mid-thigh. Lota and four other elephants (Misty, Queenie, Minnie, and Lottie) were being given tuberculosis medication as a "preventative treatment." Lota and Misty were both in need of foot care. Lota had not been weighed since 1997. There were no veterinary care records for these animals.
The inspector found several bottles of medication, said to be used on the elephants, that had no labels identifying the contents, instructions for use, or expiration date.
Hawthorn was also cited for failure to maintain the structural strength of the elephant barn and improper food storage.
October 11, 2001: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to correct a previously identified violation of not providing veterinary care by an experienced veterinarian to elephants traveling with Walker Bros. Circus. The inspector wrote, "I spoke with the veterinarian ... that had examined the animals on 10/10/01. He stated that he was not sure about the proper treatment for the elephants because he did not have much experience [in] treating them."
October 5, 2001: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to correct previously identified violations of not providing veterinary care and security for its elephants traveling with Walker Bros. Circus.
Delhi had an open, draining, and bleeding wound on her nail with blood stains on and around the nail and foot. The area above the nail was swollen and warm to the touch. The cuticles on both of her front feet were "very overgrown." Delhi was limping in pain and favored her leg during the performance. There were no documents to indicate that a qualified person was providing foot care. Tess' left eye was very teary, and she was squinting; the trainer claimed that he had run out of an antibiotic ointment to treat her eye. Two bottles of expired medication were found by the inspector.
The inspector also observed that an experienced elephant handler was not present while the public came near elephants walking freely in a pen. The inspector returned later, after the report had been discussed with the licensee, and again found that the elephants were loose and unattended.
October 2, 2001: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide veterinary care to three elephants (Liz, Delhi, and Tess, traveling with Walker Bros. Circus) with overgrown nails and cuticles. Hawthorn was also cited for failure to have dangerous animals under the control of experienced handlers. The inspector observed parents and children approaching and petting elephants while no attendant was present.
Hawthorn was cited for failure to provide structurally sound enclosures. The inspector wrote, "[T]he elephants were inside an orange plastic mesh 'fence.' It was down in two places. ... [Local authorities] informed me that earlier in the day, at least one [elephant] was outside this enclosure. Two [elephants] were completely free from any restraint. ... A water hose was running water over an electrical cord. This area was able to be touched by both elephants and the public."
October 1, 2001: The Harlan County Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Kentucky lodged a complaint with a county judge after observing that Hawthorn elephants with Walker Bros. Circus had "numerous red and raw spots on their ears from being speared with the hook-like device the trainer uses. ... The traveling quarters for the animals were at best cramped and inadequate. And at no time did I see any water dish or clean food be provided for any of the ... elephants."
September 25, 2001: Hawthorn was cited for improper food storage.
July 11, 2001: Hawthorn was cited for failure to correct previously identified violations of not disposing of expired medications and not making necessary repairs to the barn.
Hawthorn was also cited for failure to provide adequate veterinary care to three elephants with excessively overgrown nails.
June 27, 2001: During an inspection conducted at Walker Bros. Circus, Hawthorn was cited for failure to provide adequate veterinary care to four elephants with "excessive pad and toenail overgrowth on their feet" and overgrown cuticles. The inspector wrote, "It does not appear that these animals have had proper foot care in a significant amount of time."
Hawthorn was cited for failure to provide adequate veterinary care to an elephant named Lota who was "excessively thin, with a protruding spine and hip bones." The inspector wrote, "It appears that she has lost a significant amount of weight."
The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to have dangerous animals under the control of experienced handlers and failure to have adequate safety barriers. The inspector observed members of the public approaching the elephants and being loaded on an elephant for rides while no handler was present.
June 26, 2001: The USDA cited Hawthorn for physically abusing elephants. The inspector observed the handler gouge an elephant named Ronnie on the trunk with a bullhook, causing an open lesion, and a different handler was "observed raking the back of another elephant several times with his hook during the performance."
May 23, 2001: Hawthorn was cited for failure to provide records of acquisition. The inspector also noted that Misty had an abscess on her left front foot and that her feet were in need of trimming.
April 13, 2001: A letter to the editor published in the Chicago Sun-Times stated, "I escorted a group of schoolchildren, including my 8-year-old daughter, to this year's Medinah Shrine Circus. ... When the elephants were brought behind the curtain, the trainer began verbally abusing and hitting the elephant. We watched in horror as he swung a stick with all his force and struck the elephant in the back of the leg. This must have hurt because the elephant let out a scream that could be heard throughout the UIC Pavilion. The kids were frightened and asked me why the man was hurting the elephant."
According to documents from the city of Chicago, a cruelty to animals complaint was filed against trainer John Caudill, a Hawthorn employee. The elephants used at Medinah Shrine Circus were leased from Hawthorn.
March 29, 2001: Hawthorn was cited for failure to provide adequate veterinary care to an elephant named Delhi traveling with Walker Bros. Circus. Delhi had an injury on her left front foot. The inspector wrote, "The lesion is open and bleeding today and should be evaluated by a veterinarian."
March 1, 2001: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to correct a previously identified violation of not disposing of expired medications. Hawthorn was also cited for failure to maintain a tiger enclosure with an "extremely rusty shift door with sharp metal edges" and an "excessively chewed/clawed" wood partition. Hawthorn was cited for inadequate ventilation in a barn with "an extremely strong urine odor."
The inspector noted that a 12-year-old white male tiger named Neve died while being transported back to winter quarters and that a 6-year-old white female tiger named Java died in June 2000.
February 23, 2001: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to correct a previously identified violation of not repairing damages to a trailer used to transport tigers.
July 11, 2000: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to correct a previously identified violation of improper feeding of its tigers. Hawthorn was also cited for a trailer in disrepair.
June 6, 2000: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to dispose of expired medications, improper food storage, and failure to maintain the structural strength of a tiger enclosure with a rusted wall and sharp, exposed edges.
May 21, 2000: According to the Hanover Sun , Cuneo put a killer elephant named Freda back on tour with a traveling circus in defiance of a USDA directive that she posed an "unacceptable risk to public."
November 16, 1999: Hawthorn was cited for failure to maintain enclosures in a manner that protects the animals from injury and for storing moldy food.
August 18, 1999: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to have annual tuberculosis tests for the elephant handlers.
July 9, 1999: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide veterinary care to an elephant named Lota who had a "large open wound on the right hip area." The inspector wrote, "During the inspection the left side of the wound was weeping and bloody."
June 16, 1999: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to have a veterinarian-approved diet plan for the tigers, handle food in a manner that prevents contamination, and submit the required itinerary.
May 11, 1999: The USDA denied Hawthorn's request to use an elephant named Frieda in public exhibition, stating that she posed an "unacceptable risk to public, and therefore her own, safety." Frieda had rampaged several times while touring with Clyde Beatty-Cole Bros. Circus.
March 16, 1999: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide proper veterinary care . The inspector noted that a tiger was administered medication that had expired. Hawthorn was also cited for improper and moldy food storage.
November 26, 1998: In an interview, published in The Evansville Courier , with Hawthorn tiger trainer Othmar Vohringer, he recalled a serious attack: "A lion took my arm off. It was just hanging there. It had to be reattached."
November 12, 1998: Hawthorn was cited for failure to follow the veterinary care program .
May 18, 1998: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide veterinary care to a tiger named Bulba who was extremely thin. The inspector also found several outdated medications, improper and moldy food storage, and unsanitary housekeeping.
May 13-17, 1998: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide adequate veterinary care . An elephant had an accumulation of necrotic skin and abrasions. All elephants were in need of foot care, skin care, and exercise. The condition of the animals suggested that they had been housed in the transport trailer for an extended period of time.
The inspector observed blood and blood stains on an elephant's face and earflap.
The animals did not have access to water. When the inspector instructed the handler to offer water, two elephants drank continuously from a bucket for eight minutes and two others drank continuously for five minutes.
April 7, 1998: The USDA cited Hawthorn for improper maintenance of transport trailers.
March 16, 1998: Cuneo agreed to a fine of $60,000 and a 45-day license suspension to settle USDA charges that his company mistreated elephants after two of his elephants died of tuberculosis in August 1996.
February 26, 1998: Hawthorn was cited for failure to have an adequate veterinary care program and a written contingency plan for elephant escapes.
November 20-21, 1997: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failing to provide veterinary care. The tuberculosis treatment protocol prescribed for the elephants was not being followed . The inspector also found improper food storage and poor housekeeping.
October 9, 1997: Hawthorn was cited for improper food storage.
September 16, 1997: The U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration informed Hawthorn that an inspection "disclosed the following potential hazard: Employees were exposed to the Mycobacterium tuberculosis when they worked around elephants infected with tuberculosis. ... [T]his letter serves as notification of the likelihood of transmission of tuberculosis from elephants to employees."
July 23, 1997: The USDA filed charges against Hawthorn , alleging it continued exhibiting tigers in Albuquerque, N.M., while its license was suspended.
April 10, 1997: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failing to provide veterinary care. The inspector noted that the tuberculosis treatment and testing protocol prescribed for the elephants by the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians was not being followed . Hawthorn was also cited for failing to maintain structures.
February 6, 1997: Hawthorn was cited for failure to provide veterinary care . The inspector wrote, "Lota is extremely thin and eyes appear to be sunken in." The inspector also found outdated medication.
The USDA suspended Hawthorn's license for 21 days after the exhibitor attempted to export a baby elephant named Nickolaus to Puerto Rico despite the fact that the animal had tested positive for tuberculosis.
January 4, 1997: An internal USDA document contained a list identifying facilities with animals who were at risk of tuberculosis due to exposure to Hawthorn's elephants: Gary Johnson's elephant compound, Utica Zoo, Catskill Game Farm, Pittsburgh Zoo, Walker Bros. Circus, Alain Zerbini, Tarzan Zerbini, George Carden Circus, Carson & Barnes Circus, Heritage Zoo, and Riddle's Elephant Farm.
January 1997: Hawthorn's herd of elephants was prohibited by the USDA from traveling, and Cuneo was not permitted to introduce a breeding bull into the tuberculosis-infected herd. Fourteen of the 18 elephants were considered at high risk of being infected.
November 12, 1996: Cuneo rejected an offer to send a 45-year-old elephant named Lota to a sanctuary. The Milwaukee Zoo donated Lota to Cuneo in 1990 despite a public outcry. The publicized transport depicted Lota being beaten onto a trailer, falling, and urinating blood. Lota was subsequently leased to circuses, contracted tuberculosis, and became emaciated.
October 22, 1996: Florida health officials obtained a court injunction to stop Liz and Lota, two Hawthorn elephants who were traveling with Walker Bros. Circus, from entering the state because they were infected with tuberculosis .
August 29, 1996: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to properly store food and maintain records of acquisition and disposition.
August 28, 1996: According to an internal USDA memo, four Hawthorn employees tested positive for tuberculosis .
August 15, 1996: USDA Acting Deputy Administrator Ron DeHaven wrote regarding discovery of a human strain of tuberculosis in Hawthorn's elephants, " [T]he state of New Mexico has told Hawthorn to leave the state or be quarantined. "There are huge epidemiological considerations , too, since Cuneo buys, sells, trades, and moves elephants like a livestock market."
August 6, 1996: A 26-year-old Hawthorn elephant named Hattie, who was leased to Circus Vargas and gave rides to children just prior to her death, died of tuberculosis while being transported from California to Illinois.
August 3, 1996: A 35-year-old Hawthorn elephant named Joyce, who was leased to Circus Vargas and gave rides to children until her death, died under anesthesia for a dental exam. She was anesthetized against the advice of a veterinarian who felt the procedure was too risky for an animal in such a debilitated state. Joyce was 1,000 pounds underweight, and 80 percent of her lung tissue had been destroyed by tuberculosis .
July 18, 1996: A Hawthorn white tiger bit the hand of a carnival worker while performing at the Orange County Fair in Middletown, N.Y.
July 17, 1996: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide veterinary care and proper food and to maintain records on the animals.
June 21, 1996: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide veterinary care .
June 18, 1996: Hawthorn was cited for failure to provide veterinary care . The inspector noted, "Lack of records demonstrating observation and treatment of injury to the skin approximately 2 inches medial to Misty's [elephant's] left eye." The inspector also observed that the current veterinary care program was not being followed and records of acquisition were not maintained.
June 14, 1996: A Hawthorn elephant named Misty, who was giving rides to children with Jordan World Circus and was previously identified as "potentially dangerous," knocked down and repeatedly kicked her trainer . One child fell off the elephant during the incident in Casper, Wyo.
May 10, 1996: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failing to provide access to veterinary records.
May 7, 1996: Hawthorn paid a $12,500 penalty to settle USDA charges of causing Tyke trauma and harm and of jeopardizing public safety. Police shot Tyke to death on August 20, 1994 after she rampaged and killed her trainer.
March 27, 1996: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide an adequate veterinary care program and maintain records of acquisition.
March 25, 1996: The USDA cited Hawthorn for inadequate housekeeping, pest control, and food storage.
October 26, 1995: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide adequate shelter and water for the elephants, improper food storage, and failure to submit an itinerary.
August 21, 1995: Hawthorn was cited for failure to provide adequate shelter for the elephants.
July 28, 1995: The USDA cited Hawthorn for inadequate structural maintenance.
January 20, 1995: In an internal USDA document, Acting Deputy Administrator Ron DeHaven identified Hawthorn elephants Sue, Billy, Misty, Tony, and Hattie as "potentially dangerous ."
January 17, 1995: According to USDA documents, while Michael Pursley worked for Hawthorn, "David Polke instructed Pursley to command Hattie to 'lay down' ( sic ) and then beat Hattie with an ax handle. ... [T]rainers also used water and food deprivation and electric shock from a cattle prod on the elephants. ... [H]e witnessed Tommy Thompson, manager at Cuneo's animal facility at Richmond, Ill., shock (hot shot) an elephant repeatedly for one-half hour in order to get the elephant to lay down ( sic ) and get up upon voice commands."
December 17, 1994: A Hawthorn elephant named Dumbo died of tuberculosis .
October 26, 1994: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide veterinary care records for an elephant named Amy who had been euthanized. Hawthorn was also cited for inadequate housekeeping and pest control, as well as failure to maintain records of acquisition and disposition.
September 15, 1994: Hawthorn was cited for the second time in three months for feeding inedible food to the tigers.
August 20, 1994: While performing at the Neal Blaisdell Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, a 20-year-old Hawthorn elephant named Tyke crushed to death her trainer, Allen Campbell, attacked and injured two others, and panicked the crowd, causing several more injuries . Tyke escaped into the streets of downtown Honolulu during the afternoon rush hour. Over the next hour, police fired 87 bullets into Tyke as she charged after pedestrians and smashed vehicles throughout several blocks. Tyke died of massive nerve damage and hemorrhaging of the brain.
Campbell was described as a "punishment-type" trainer who worked the elephants hard. An autopsy found that he had cocaine and alcohol in his system.
July 14, 1994: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide a program of veterinary care .
June 16, 1994: Hawthorn was cited for feeding inedible food to the tigers.
May 11, 1994: The USDA cited Hawthorn for inadequate structural maintenance.
May 9, 1994: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide a veterinary care program and medical records . Hawthorn was also cited for failure to maintain a transport trailer for the elephants and maintain records of acquisition and disposition.
February 14, 1994: The USDA cited Hawthorn for failure to provide a veterinary care program .
January 13-14, 1994: The USDA cited Hawthorn for unsanitary and improper food storage, poor housekeeping, and having outdated medications and dirty water containers.
July 23, 1993: An elephant named Tyke ran amok at the North Dakota State Fair in Minot, N.D., trampling and injuring a handler and frightening the crowd as she ran uncontrolled for 25 minutes.
April 22, 1993: According to an affidavit obtained by the USDA from circus worker Richard Rosio, Tyke attacked a tiger trainer while the circus was in Altoona, Pa.
April 21, 1993: An elephant named Tyke ripped through the front doors of the Jaffa Mosque during a performance and ran out of control for an hour in Altoona, Pa. An estimated 4,500 schoolchildren had to evacuate the building, and the rampage caused more than $14,000 in damage.
February 4, 1993: A Hawthorn employee, Bernhard Rosenquist, was charged with attempted murder, aggravated battery, and armed violence for allegedly stabbing a coworker. Rosenquist was also wanted by federal authorities as a probation violator and by the Lake County, Ill., authorities on burglary charges.
June 21, 1988: According to USDA and Canadian law enforcement documents, while a Hawthorn elephant named Tyke was performing with Tarzan Zerbini Circus, " The elephant handler was observed beating the single-tusk African elephant in public to the point [where] the elephant was screaming and bending down on three legs to avoid being hit . Even when the handler walked by the elephant after this, the elephant screamed and veered away, demonstrating fear from his presence." The handler was John Caudill (a.k.a. John Walker of Walker Bros. Circus) who admitted to "disciplining" Tyke after she hit Caudill's brother and put a hole in his back with her tusk.
May 28, 1981: An 11-year-old Hawthorn elephant named Tina, with a one-year history of weight loss, died under anesthesia and was found to have tuberculosis .
1978: A Hawthorn Corporation elephant performing in Chicago with the Shrine Circus picked up her trainer with her trunk and threw him into a pillar, killing him.
For more information, contact: PETA
501 Front St.
Norfolk, VA 23510
757-622-7382
Home Report to Feds Report to State Agency Tell the Press
These links will take you away from the 911 Animal Abuse site.
mock rpx login link