Exclusive
There is rampant animal abuse at the ‘Tiger King’ zoo, according to federal authorities, but Jeff Lowe He says the findings are misleading and unfair.
The USDA recently completed an investigation into the GW Exotic Animal Park in Oklahoma, and blamed the zoo for failing to provide adequate veterinary care for lions, tigers, and bears. However, Lowe calls BS in the USDA report … and claims he’s trying to catch him.
Here’s something the inspectors found according to the report: a 16-week-old lion cub named Nala She was lethargic, depressed, and so thin that she could not get up from a sitting position even after being instructed. The puppy was immediately removed from the park and taken to a vet.
Lowe claims that Nala was rescued from Tim stark – who also appeared in the series ‘Tiger King’ – and the zoo spent a fortune trying to take care of her and others to regain their health.
Other examples of neglect, according to the report, include 2 geriatric wolves suffering from arthritis. The USDA says the zoo “was not following the vet’s instructions to provide medications and bedding for the wolves.”
Inspectors also say that a brown bear was also found to be extremely thin and a black bear that appeared to be underweight … and both bears reportedly exhibited increased aggression.
But, Jeff states that the report does not acknowledge that “many of the animals we house here are at the end of their lives and suffer from arthritis and lose some weight towards the end of their days.”
He insists that the wolves are receiving treatment and that the bears are in their proper weight class, and claims that local authorities and the Department of Fish and Wildlife recently considered them in good shape.
Finally, the USDA claims that the charred remains of a 17-year-old tiger, along with a dead tiger, were discovered in a large pile of mainly wooden debris at the rear of the park. The report says: “There is an unpleasant smell of decomposing meat and many flies are present on the boards and surrounding areas.”
Lowe did not address the dead animals, but maintains that the GW Zoo has weekly vet visits and prior to this report … he received 5 clean inspections from the USDA.
He tells us that he believes the ‘King Tiger’ documentary painted a poor picture of the zoo. Lowe claims that all the incidents listed by the USDA in its June 22 report have been corrected.
As we reported … the photos of a whistleblower from lions suffering from flystrike in June they were released to PETA, who raised the alarm and involved the authorities.
