ROCKRIDGE COUNTY VA (Hinton News) – On Jan. 19, a Rockbridge County judge made the ruling that “Natural Bridge Zoo,” located at 6477 S. Lee Highway in Natural Bridge, was free to keep 39 of over 100 animals which were seized last month following a months-long investigation. In a second hearing on Jan. 25, to discuss unresolved matters from the Jan. 19 hearing, Natural Bridge Zoo was ordered to pay $45,563.46 to the County for providing care to the seized animals.
Some may recall that on Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2023, law enforcement officials arrived at the “Natural Bridge Zoo” to confiscate several allegedly mistreated animals. It was initially reported to have been 89 living and 27 deceased animals. However, it was recently revealed in court that it was 96 living alongside the 27 deceased.
Here is the backstory.
An employee with the “Natural Bridge Zoo” was hired in March of 2023 and became immediately concerned for the well-being of the animals. That person would eventually become an informant to police, keeping documents, recording conversations, and taking photos of the alleged abuse before turning the information over to law enforcement. The anonymous employee stated they were instructed to maintain “keeper respect” from another employee who then explained the correct way to abuse an elephant into submission.
The anonymous employee/informant also noted the small enclosures of the animals and became particularly concerned over Asha, the elephant, who lived alone in her habitat. Knowing that elephants are social creatures who spend most of their time communicating with other elephants, he was concerned over Asha’s mental well-being, who he believed suffered from loneliness and boredom. He was also concerned with Asha being forced to exceed the recommended weight limit for carrying patrons. A sign at “Natural Bridge Zoo” limits the weight Asha could carry to 250 pounds, but he often saw parents riding Asha with their child/children.
The remaining allegations range from inadequate care of giraffes, improper care of Zeus, the tiger who was eventually euthanized and found to be eaten up with cancer, improper food, a dead goat in an enclosure with living goats, etc. Photos were taken by an undercover agent in October and November 2023, leading to the raid on Dec. 6, 2023.
Other decisions made in the case were the following:
— the defendants’ (zoo owners) request of stay was denied by the judge
— the defendants’ appeal bond was set to $55,400 to cover the cost of housing the animals through the state for the next two months
— the defendants were given custody of 4 giraffes, whom the state was requesting custody
— Judge Mooney ordered surprise inspections that will be “giraffe-specific” over the next 6 months
This case remains ongoing and more updates will provided as information becomes available.
