Animals Underfed and Denied Vet Care at Rundown Bandon Roadside Zoo; PETA Seeks Criminal Probe

For Immediate Release:
October 16, 2024

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

A just-released U.S. Department of Agriculture inspection report from West Coast Game Park Safari details 19 damning new violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act involving inadequate veterinary care, underfed animals, ramshackle enclosures, piles of feces, visitors allowed to feed and touch animals with no employee supervision, and an adult lion confined to a flimsy cage behind the owner’s house with no perimeter fencing. In response to this report and a previous one from April, PETA rushed a letter this morning to Oregon State Police Capt. Casey Thomas and Oregon Department of Justice Senior Assistant Attorney General Jake Kamins calling on them to investigate and file applicable charges against the roadside zoo. The group also alerted the U.S. Department of Justice to the barren conditions and lack of a specialized enrichment plan for a solitary chimpanzee at the park named George—almost certainly a violation of the Endangered Species Act.

The eight-page report notes that the attending veterinarian is on site only two days per week, doesn’t respond to emergencies, and doesn’t treat primates or birds—meaning that none of the animals at West Coast Game Park Safari receive adequate veterinary care and that George likely receives no veterinary care at all. The report also points out that the park doesn’t have enough employees to care for the more than 300 animals it confines. The numerous other violations detailed in the report include multiple enclosures that contain sharp wires, screws, rotted wood, broken fencing, and other hazardous objects; several sheep and a yak with thick, matted coats; two lynx confined in total darkness to a building with no lights and no windows; and piles of trash and accumulated feces found throughout the property. PETA points out that the operation is also apparently in violation of state laws—its wildlife exhibitor permit is expired, and it’s ineligible for a new one.

“Failing to adequately clean its facilities, feed and care for the animals held there, and provide enrichment for a chimpanzee languishing alone is par for the course at West Coast Game Park Safari,” says PETA Foundation Associate Director of Legal and Regulatory Advocacy Molly Johnson. “PETA is calling on Oregon authorities to investigate this seedy operation and urges everyone to stay far away from all roadside zoos.”

West Coast Game Park Safari has been repeatedly cited for violations of the Animal Welfare Act, including last year, when the facility was caught allowing visitors to pet a young jaguar—which is also a violation of the Big Cat Public Safety Act—and a juvenile brown bear. It was also cited for failing to provide adequate veterinary care to an elderly tiger who died after fighting with another tiger. Staff reported that the animal was “sore” after the fight but failed to notify the attending veterinarian until they found the tiger dead the next morning.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.