HAUPPAUGE, NY (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – Long Island’s Sloth Encounters has been blasted by the Humane Society of the United States for abusing the sloths it homes and keeping them in poor conditions, based on findings from an undercover investigation.
The undercover investigator, who obtained disturbing footage at the Hauppage facility while posing as a customer, observed sloths fighting, staff hitting the animals and stressed sloths kept in crowded conditions.
Larry Wallach – the owner of Sloth Encounters who has been cited by the U.S. Department of Agriculture 28 times for violations of the Animal Welfare Act, and previously had his AWA license suspended for six months – was seen roughly grabbing the head and neck of a wounded sloth.
“The owner of this appalling facility shows no regard for the health and wellbeing of animals or public safety. His numerous animal welfare violations warrant shutting this place down and never allowing him to have animals in his care. Our investigator documented how deplorable this operation is and the extent of abuse for profit,” New York State Director for the Humane Society said.
But Sloth Encounters on its website says, "We are an animal loving company. We love all of our furry to scaly friends. We have been in the business of caring for animals for over 40 years ... All of our workers are trained to handle our animals."
According to the Humane Society, sloths are reclusive and nocturnal animals, and are prone to blood pressure rises and sleep disruption in encounters like Wallach’s.
The organization posits that the sloths fighting is due to the stress caused by living in captivity, overcrowding, inability to escape and forced encounters.
It became clear from the investigation that the staff of Sloth Encounters were familiar with the fighting habits, with one of the staffers telling a customer “I told you’d watch them fight ... I said, ‘wait for a fight.’”
“Sloth Encounters is an unlawful petting zoo that subjects vulnerable baby animals to grabbing hands, noisy crowds, and ramshackle cages inside a store zoned for pool supplies. Wallach’s reign of terror on animals ranging from sloths and tiger cubs to kangaroos and capybaras has been going on for decades," anthrozoologist and Executive Director of Humane Long Island John Di Leonardo.