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The Catskill Game Farm, a zoo and hands-on farm in New York, closed in 2006 due to declining attendance and financial problems. Most of the 2,000 animals were sold in an open auction, with concerns raised about their welfare. Animal rights groups purchased 200 animals, while others were feared to have been sold to unlicensed dealers for canned hunts. The zoo’s machinery, rides and attractions were also auctioned off. The closure of zoos is becoming more common due to declining attendance and pressure from animal rights groups.
The Catskill Game Farm was a zoo in Catskill, New York that was open for 73 years until it closed on October 9, 2006. The farm was both a zoo and a hands-on farm, where children could walk and pet animals. It closed due to declining attendance, financial problems, and a new state regulation applied to an attraction at Catskill Game Farm, a water play area called the “Splash Pad.” Although the splash pad at the Catskill Zoo was functioning properly, another one in the area was not, leading to the new regulations.
The zoo was founded in 1933 by Roland Lindemann. He opened with a few farm animals, including donkeys, deer, goats and sheep. It was officially recognized as a zoo in 1958 by the United States Department of Agriculture. Lindemann’s daughter Kathie Schultz still owned and operated the Catskill Game Farm at the time of its closure.
At its peak, the zoo occupied over 1,000 acres. It featured around 2,000 animals from over 150 species and various parts of the world. The big question when Catskill Game Farm closed was where all these 2,000 animals would go. Animal rights activists have become particularly concerned about the whereabouts of these exotic and domesticated creatures.
Most of the Catskill Game Farm animals were sold in an open auction on October 18, 2006. Activists were concerned that some of the exotic animals sold would be used in what is known as a “canned hunt,” where these animals are controlled – released in a restricted area and then hunted for sport. Best Friends, an animal rights coalition, organized a “compassionate giving effort” that day and was able to purchase 200 animals who are now living safely in sanctuaries.
According to a Best Friends press release, a warthog named Louise bought for US$9,000 (USD) was the most expensive animal sold at auction. Other animals sold included “two white rhinos, four vervet monkeys, several aoudads, nilgai, a European boar, a warthog, pygmy asses, llamas, pot-bellied pigs, rabbits, ducks and pigeons.” The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) oversaw the auction, but feared some animals had been sold to unlicensed dealers who may have been associated with canned hunts.
Many of the Catskill Game Farm’s machinery, rides and attractions were also auctioned off, although the land was not. This zoo in Catskill, New York, isn’t the only zoo that’s closed — others follow suit often, largely due to declining attendance and pressure from animal rights groups like Best Friends or HSUS. Many people enjoyed visiting zoos as children, but this family pastime is slowly getting harder to find.
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