Victory: Utah amusement park transfers its captive big cats to a sanctuary
After a decades-long campaign calling for their freedom, a tiger, lion, and leopard are among those living in a new sanctuary home.
File photo of a tiger in a zoo enclosure.
Over the last decade, public attitude towards keeping animals in captivity has steadily transformed, with more and more people recognizing that animals should not be forced to perform tricks or be used in performances, nor be kept in unnatural enclosures.
Instead, both the public and industry are increasingly favoring reputable sanctuaries where captive animals can live a more natural life with the freedom to roam and interact with others of the same species.
Now, in the latest sign of this hopeful trend, an amusement park in Utah has successfully transferred its big cats to a sanctuary, after a decades-long campaign had called for their freedom.
Known as the Lagoon, the amusement park located in Farmington, Utah, sent all of its big cats to The Wild Animal Sanctuary in Keenesburg, Colorado, late last year.
Among the animals were a 15-year-old white Bengal tiger, a 15-year-old African lion, two black leopards, and two cougars.
The park had faced decades of criticism for the treatment of its captive wild animals, who were kept as part of Lagoon’s Wild Kingdom zoo exhibit. Visitors could view the animals as part of a train ride attraction.
Utah Animal Rights Coalition (UARC) hosted dozens of protests calling for the animals to be sent to a sanctuary.
Credit: URAC
Lagoon has reportedly received various citations for violating the federal Animal Welfare Act, and reports highlighted animal welfare concerns including a camel with drooping humps, a nocturnal South American coati kept in a tiny cage next to the “screeching” train ride, and kangaroos kept on artificial turf and concrete.
A petition by animal advocacy group People for the Treatment of Animals (PETA) calling for the park to end its zoo train ride and retire its animals garnered over 100,000 signatures, while local animal rights activists including the Utah Animal Rights Coalition (UARC) hosted dozens of protests and filed federal complaints for years.
Through its campaigning, UARC said it was able to galvanize public support with tens of thousands of Utahns sending emails and writing letters to campaign for the animals’ freedom.
"This struggle has literally been going on for 25 years," Amy Meyer, UARC’s spokesperson told local news.
“UARC believes and hopes that this is the sign that the younger generations of leaders at Lagoon is doing what the Utah public has been demanding for years, literally decades now,” added Meyer.
Camapigners from the Utah Animal Rights Coalition (UARC). Credit: URAC
As part of their new lives at the The Wild Animal Sanctuary, the big cats will be able to engage in their natural behaviours for the first time in years - or possibly even for the first time ever. In contrast to the small enclosures at Lagoon, the big cats’ new home will be measured in square acres, not square feet, UARC said in a celebratory statement.
In addition to big cats being retired to a sanctuary, the Lagoon also announced that it will be closing the zoo element to the park. Adam Leishman, a spokesperson for the amusement park, told local outlet The Salt Lake Tribune that Lagoon aims to “close the remainder of the [zoo] exhibits within this calendar year.”
The UARC said it will monitor the situation with the Lagoon’s remaining animals at the park, and “has good faith” that Lagoon will continue to send more of them to sanctuaries to follow the calls of the Utah public.
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