In contrast to the 10 best zoos thread I though I would start a worst zoo visited thread and ask what makes a zoo a disappointment.
My nomination is Space Farms in Beemerville, NJ, USA, it claims to be the largest privately owned zoo in the world and has 500 animals of over 100 species.
The entrance is like an old hunting lodge that smells really musty. There are several stuffed specimens/heads on the wall showing previous generations of the Space families hunting trophies. Upstairs there are hundreds of guns on display, toys, glassware and biological curiousities including native Indian scalps that still have part of the flesh attached. You can purchase animal cookies and cracked corn along with your admission to feed the animals, there are no animals that you cannot feed. The exhibits for the lions, tigers and kodiak bear are some of the smallest I've seen, are surrounded by flies, waste spoiled food and are generally dirty and have too many animals in the alloted space. The jaguar, leopard and cougar enclosures are literally three sided boxes on legs with short mesh enclosures and maybe a fallen log as enrichment. Deer and hooved stock have larger enclosures but are generally devoid of vegetation with rock and slushy mud as the main substrate. The place seems to have an identity crisis there are a couple of sheds containing classic American cars, motorbikes, and carriages including hearses, in another old childrens toys and there is a mineral viewing room and a musical waterfeature, all are neglected and starting to fall apart. Primates are also in bare cages and and prone to the throwing of animal crackers and other objects. There are no specilaised houses but outside is a snake pit with several types of non-venoumous snake as well as a few vivariums with poisonous snakes, these are all fed live food and you can see the white mice in them trembling, awaiting their fate. The collection is mammal heavy and also has foxes, american badgers, bison, wolves, hyena, llama, yak, coyote as well as several deer species.
Being a zoo freak I can see good in nearly all zoos that I visit, sure there are exhibits I'd love to change, rules that drive me mad or charges I find outrageous but this is the one place I go and come away berated myself for visiting again thinking it will have got better since last time.
My nomination is Space Farms in Beemerville, NJ, USA, it claims to be the largest privately owned zoo in the world and has 500 animals of over 100 species.
The entrance is like an old hunting lodge that smells really musty. There are several stuffed specimens/heads on the wall showing previous generations of the Space families hunting trophies. Upstairs there are hundreds of guns on display, toys, glassware and biological curiousities including native Indian scalps that still have part of the flesh attached. You can purchase animal cookies and cracked corn along with your admission to feed the animals, there are no animals that you cannot feed. The exhibits for the lions, tigers and kodiak bear are some of the smallest I've seen, are surrounded by flies, waste spoiled food and are generally dirty and have too many animals in the alloted space. The jaguar, leopard and cougar enclosures are literally three sided boxes on legs with short mesh enclosures and maybe a fallen log as enrichment. Deer and hooved stock have larger enclosures but are generally devoid of vegetation with rock and slushy mud as the main substrate. The place seems to have an identity crisis there are a couple of sheds containing classic American cars, motorbikes, and carriages including hearses, in another old childrens toys and there is a mineral viewing room and a musical waterfeature, all are neglected and starting to fall apart. Primates are also in bare cages and and prone to the throwing of animal crackers and other objects. There are no specilaised houses but outside is a snake pit with several types of non-venoumous snake as well as a few vivariums with poisonous snakes, these are all fed live food and you can see the white mice in them trembling, awaiting their fate. The collection is mammal heavy and also has foxes, american badgers, bison, wolves, hyena, llama, yak, coyote as well as several deer species.
Being a zoo freak I can see good in nearly all zoos that I visit, sure there are exhibits I'd love to change, rules that drive me mad or charges I find outrageous but this is the one place I go and come away berated myself for visiting again thinking it will have got better since last time.
I am all for shutting down such facilities as this. I just did a search for this place, yuck! Surely the display of Native American skulls is illegal; the whole place should be, actually!
