On May 4, PETA assisted in the rescue of the final nine animals held at the notorious Waccatee Zoo in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina! Following a lawsuit filed by PETA and two concerned citizens who visited the roadside zoo and were appalled by conditions for animals there, a llama, two bears, and six emus are heading to The Wild Animal Sanctuary (TWAS) in Springfield, Colorado. At the sanctuary, these animals—following their quarantine and rehabilitation—will be released into massive, multi-acre habitats in a natural setting. There, they’ll no longer be used as props for human entertainment. They’ll live as freely as is possible for captive animals.
Waccatee claims that it permanently closed its doors to the public in September 2022, after PETA and our co-plaintiffs filed a lawsuit against the facility.
Two Bears Rescued From Waccatee Zoo
The bears—who are thin and suffer from a chronic skin condition—will receive immediate expert veterinary care once they arrive at their new sanctuary home.
They’ll go from living in a cramped, dark enclosure at Waccatee, in which they could only take a few steps in any direction, to living in a bear’s paradise at TWAS, where they’ll have the things these animals need and enjoy:
- Acres to roam
- Soft ground for digging
- Opportunities for climbing, foraging, and socializing with other bears
In total, PETA has rescued 80 bears from roadside zoos, private owners, and the entertainment industry in the past 11 years.
Seven Other Animals Now Headed to Sanctuary
At the sanctuary, the llama and six emus will have ample space to explore. Their new homes come complete with appropriate shelter from the elements as well as access to excellent care from dedicated sanctuary staff.
Despite the Rescue, PETA’s Lawsuit Against Waccatee’s Operators Continues
Previously, PETA dubbed Waccatee “the worst roadside zoo in America.” For decades, we advocated for the roadside zoo’s closure due to the ramshackle conditions and chronic neglect of the animals held there. On April 27, 2022, PETA and our two co-plaintiffs filed suit against the facility and its operators, alleging violations of both the federal Endangered Species Act and South Carolina’s public nuisance law.
In September 2022, PETA learned that Waccatee was secretly transferring some of the animals it held, an act that hindered our ability to collect evidence about the animals’ conditions and push for any needed veterinary treatment. We filed an emergency motion to prohibit additional transfers.
The court agreed with us, barring additional animal transfers except without prior notice to the plaintiffs and requiring Waccatee to account for the location of the transferred animals. Most of the roadside zoo’s animals had already been transferred to other roadside zoos or sold at shady exotic-animal auctions.
PETA’s lawsuit remains ongoing. We’re working to ensure that those who were responsible for the chronic neglect of animals at Waccatee will never again be allowed to exploit wild and exotic animals.
Here’s How You Can Help Bears Exploited for Entertainment
Yellowstone Bear World is a bear-breeding tourist trap that tears vulnerable, weeks-old cubs away from their mothers and exploits them in public encounters. These bears would naturally stay with and learn from their mothers for the first two years of their lives, so depriving them of this bond for commercial gain is a form of speciesism—a human-supremacist worldview. The roadside zoo also ships bears to other shady exhibitors across the country.
Urge Yellowstone Bear World’s remaining promoters not to support the roadside zoo:
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