During the winter, she’s locked inside a cold, damp barn, and in the summer heat, she’s forced to walk in endless circles while giving rides. The Natural Bridge Zoo keeps a lone elephant named Asha, who has spent years without the company of another elephant.

Natural Bridge Zoo and Virginia Safari Park Natural Bridge, Virginia An investigation conducted by the Toronto Star detailed widespread reports of negligence, cruelty, and mass animal graves. The park also keeps bears, deer, bison, and elk confined to cages, surrounded by noisy roller coasters and other theme park rides. The infamous marine park has imported beluga whales and dolphins abducted by humans from their ocean homes, and visitors are allowed to feed and touch the belugas throughout the day. MarineLand displays beluga whales, dolphins, sea lions, and walruses in cramped tanks. MarineLand Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada They also keep numerous other species-such as a camel with drooping humps, which can be a sign of weight loss or dehydration-in small, bleak pens. The owners confine a solitary lion to a tiny, barren concrete cage next to a screeching steam train and surrounded by roller coasters packed with screaming crowds. The feds have slapped Lagoon Amusement Park with various citations for violating the AWA, including repeated ones for inadequate veterinary care, filthy enclosures, and inadequately trained staff. The feds cited the roadside zoo for failing to provide chimpanzees with adequate enrichment after PETA filed a complaint, which presented evidence that the chimpanzees had experienced hair loss-possibly as a result of over-grooming caused by a lack of stimulation-and that one chimpanzee repeatedly sucked on his hand for over 30 minutes. Hovatter’s allowed an alpaca’s teeth to become so overgrown that the animal’s ability to eat was impaired, and it failed to provide young lion cubs with adequate nutrition. Hovatter’s Wildlife Zoo Kingwood, West Virginia As if they were stuck in the 1950s, these facilities display often neurotic bears in desolate concrete pits or cramped cages.Ĭlark’s Trading Post Lincoln, New HampshireĬlark’s Trading Post confines North American black bears to grossly undersized and barren concrete pits and forces them to ride scooters, be pushed on a swing, and eat ice cream from a spoon. Cherokee Bear Zoo and Santa’s Land Cherokee, North CarolinaĬherokee Bear Zoo and Santa’s Land-two roadside zoos located on tribal land in western North Carolina-keep bears and other animals in grossly inhumane conditions. The facility also has a history of abuse, attacks, escapes, and fines for violating state and federal laws as well as evidence of an inability to meet the country’s minimum standards for animal care. Since 1995, it has acquired over 100 baby wild animals from breeders and other roadside zoo operators. The Kirshner Wildlife Foundation has a long history of acquiring infant animals torn away from their mothers. Kirshner Wildlife Foundation Oroville, California The owners confine many other animals––such as a bobcat, kookaburras, and scarlet macaws––to small, barren cages. Workers also tear baby alligators away from their mothers and tape their mouths shut for shows and public encounters.Īlso at Alligator Adventure, visitors have observed a cougar pacing, which is a sign of psychological distress. Employees attempt to break up fights by hitting the animals with large sticks. Alligators live in crowded enclosures, where they have to fight for food and “death roll”-the term for what the animals often do to kill prey-each other. Reptiles aren’t regulated under the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA), so hundreds of alligators, crocodiles, snakes, and other reptiles at Alligator Adventure are afforded no protection. Here are a few of the grimmest spots for animals: Alligator Adventure North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Map It: Where NOT to Stop During Your Next Road Trip

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