Newly released documents show that the exotic animals caged at a backyard zoo in Ohio suffered abuse and neglect — lacking necessities such as food, water and shade — while the public was repeatedly placed at risk by ramshackle enclosures and animals on the loose.
Lion cages often lacked ro
ofs, leaving “nothing to prevent the animals from … escaping,” and other animals were kept in filthy, cramped pens, according to the reports by the Muskingum County Sheriff’s Office. Pens were too close together, causing anxiety for the animals and sometimes injury: One tiger was missing its tail, most likely because an animal in an adjoining cage had ripped or bitten it off.
Moreover, the documents, which were released Friday and posted on the Sheriff’s Office website, suggest that Ohio law enforcement officials were unable to put a stop to the situation. The state has been criticized by animal rights activists as being too lenient toward owners of exotic and dangerous animals.
Authorities said Terry Thompson, owner of the Muskingum County Animal Farm in Zanesville, threw open the cages and pens holding more than 50 animals, including lions, tigers, grizzly bears, wolves and monkeys, and then killed himself.
Law enforcement officials who were called to the farm at dusk Tuesday said they had little choice but to gun down most of the animals to prevent them from leaving the farm at nightfall. Six animals were rescued, and Thompson’s estranged wife, Marian, has expressed interest in reuniting with them.
The documents show that law enforcement authorities were called to the Thompson compound on Kopchak Road again and again over the years to follow up on dozens of complaints — including a lion on the loose; horses, cows and bulls breaking free and trampling neighbors’ property; and a mountain lion sighting.
But the most serious allegations, according to the documents, arose in 2008 and involved reports of animal cruelty and public safety abuses, including:
•Inadequate fencing. Some cages lacked roofs, while others were secured by plastic ties and other makeshift methods. In some cases, lions and tigers were kept in relatively lightweight dog kennels.
Unsanitary conditions. Cages were caked with layers of urine and feces. In some cases, animals were living alongside rotting carcasses.
Pens so tight that the animals, particularly tigers and lions, could not get sufficient exercise, or pens located right alongside each other, causing stress and anxiety for the animals.
Poor diets. Lion cubs showed signs of being bowlegged because of malnutrition.
Follow-up reports suggest that the Thompsons made many upgrades demanded of them. According to some of the paperwork, authorities decided at one point that there was not enough evidence for a conviction on animal abuse charges and instead opted to work with the couple to remedy the situation.
“I confirmed with Marian … that they would call the Sheriff’s Office immediately if an animal ever escaped,” an officer wrote in a report.
Neighbors raised concerns about cruelty and sanitation after noticing that several cattle had died and their remains were left within view of the road in an area where animals continued to graze and wander. Dead animals were ultimately placed in a “dead hole” on the property, documents said.
“The smell of rotting flesh was very hard to stand,” an officer noted in one of the reports.
Marian Thompson told authorities that she and her husband took in many of the animals because they were abused and unwanted. “They keep them because they are animal lovers,” a report said.
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