Union Arena officials asked Garden Bros. Circus to perform without animals after learning from PETA that a whistleblower had reported that the circus’s manager, Zachary Garden, habitually beats animals and withholds food from them and has refused to provide injured and dying animals with adequate veterinary care.
After learning that the Haai Shark Encounter was planning to harass gentle nurse sharks at the International Cherry Blossom Festival in Macon, Georgia, PETA told festival organizers that trucking sharks thousands of miles around the country so that someone can pull on their fins and tails in front of screaming children is not educational—it’s cruel. … Read more »
After hearing from PETA, the city of Norfolk, Virginia, denied Garden Bros. Circus permits to exhibit animals at its shows at the Ted Constant Convocation Center because of its and its elephant exhibitor’s records of public-safety and animal-welfare violations.
After hearing from PETA about the record of public-safety and animal-welfare violations of Garden Bros. Circus—as well as that of its elephant exhibitor, Carson & Barnes Circus—Hall County Animal Services in Georgia barred the circuses from exhibiting elephants during the Garden Bros. shows at the Chicopee Woods Agricultural Center in Gainesville.
In March 2017, three black bears formerly on display at The Mobile Zoo started new lives. Following months of negotiations that were prompted by PETA, the roadside zoo’s operator was arrested on 28 charges of cruelty to animals, and the bears were confiscated and transferred to The Wild Animal Sanctuary in Colorado.
Long-time PETA target Hollywild Animal Park, a roadside zoo in South Carolina, announced that it wouldn’t be opening for the 2017 season and that it may be closed for good. Its history includes a fire that killed dozens of animals in 2015 as well as numerous animal-welfare violations resulting in a nearly $19,000 fine from … Read more »
An administrative law judge ordered Dade City’s Wild Things to stop its “swim with tigers” encounters and pay a civil penalty of $21,000. The judge also considered a 60-day suspension of Dade City’s exhibitor license and found that the facility willfully violated the federal AWA by exposing young tigers to “rough or excessive public handling” … Read more »
After reviewing PETA’s online materials about Garden Bros. Circus and Carson & Barnes Circus (which provides Garden Bros. with animals), Lowndes County, Georgia, refused to allow Garden Bros. to perform, based on the safety record of both exhibitors. The county denied the permits without any correspondence from PETA. After the denial, PETA contacted the county … Read more »
McClelland’s Critters has closed! Animals at this Alabama roadside zoo had been observed living in filth and squalor and were kept inside cages that were in a dangerous state of disrepair. In addition, the owners of this outfit had been repeatedly cited by the USDA for denying animals adequate veterinary care and failing to provide … Read more »
In January 2017, the Flato Markham Theatre in Ontario confirmed that tigers would no longer be part of magician Greg Frewin’s scheduled show there. This decision came after PETA sent a letter to both the theatre and city officials pointing out the city’s ban on the use of exotic animals in public displays.
Woody’s Menagerie had its exhibitor license suspended by the USDA for a minimum of 90 days following numerous complaints from PETA and a USDA lawsuit. The facility had failed to ensure adequate veterinary care for animals—several of whom later died. It was also ordered to pay an $8,000 fine.
