Live Roundups Editor's Desk Insights Executive Ops Weather About 🔍
Home › Environment › Animal welfare violations swarm Miami zoo owned by...
Environment

Animal welfare violations swarm Miami zoo owned by ex-drug kingpin in Tiger King

The Guardian UK Saturday 30 May 2026, 13:00 UTC By Richard Luscombe in Miami 1 min read
Key Points

Endangered snow leopard had leg amputated and capybara died at Mario Tabraue’s controversial roadside facilityAn endangered clouded leopard had a leg amputated and a capybara died following botched breeding attempts at a controversial Miami roadside zoo owned by a convicted drug trafficker featured in the Netflix documentary Tiger King. Federal wildlife inspectors found multiple other violations during a March inspection at Zoological Wildlife Foundation (ZWF), including dilapidated,...

Endangered snow leopard had leg amputated and capybara died at Mario Tabraue’s controversial roadside facility

An endangered clouded leopard had a leg amputated and a capybara died following botched breeding attempts at a controversial Miami roadside zoo owned by a convicted drug trafficker featured in the Netflix documentary Tiger King.

Federal wildlife inspectors found multiple other violations during a March inspection at Zoological Wildlife Foundation (ZWF), including dilapidated, insecure or unsafe housing conditions for wild animals, filthy cages, and water and food contaminated with algae and dead insects.

Continue reading...
Miami (LOCATION) Mario Tabraue (PERSON) Netflix (ORG) Tiger King (PERSON) Zoological Wildlife Foundation (ORG)
Originally published by The Guardian UK Read original →

Related Stories

Pump-action soap dispensers are a disgrace – and I won’t put up with them any longer | Adrian Chiles

Either give us a simple squeezy bottle that actually works or bring back the tried-and-tested solid barsEven as I pick it off the shelf, I know it will let me down. I rate the chances of it working no better than 50/50. So why do I buy it, when the dead hand of impending disappointment taps so insistently on my shoulder?

The Guardian UK 47m ago

Toby Carvery to pay for orchard planting after causing outrage by felling 500-year-old oak

Restaurant chain took chainsaw to ancient oak tree in Enfield without permissionThe UK restaurant chain Toby Carvery has settled a legal dispute over taking a chainsaw to an ancient oak tree without permission, by agreeing to pay to restore a lost orchard. The unauthorised partial felling of the 500-year-old oak next to a Toby Carvery car park in Whitewebbs Park, Enfield, north London, in April last year, prompted widespread public outrage and questions in parliament.

The Guardian Environment 1h ago

Deepest and most extensive whale graveyard discovered in Indian Ocean

Some remains found in Diamantina fracture zone date back more than 5m years and reveal species and ecosystems unknown to scienceThe oldest, deepest and most extensive whale graveyard yet discovered has been found in the south-eastern Indian Ocean, with fossils dating back more than 5m years. Whale falls – the term for dead whales that sink to the ocean floor – are not uncommon, but most have been found at depths of less than 4km (2.5 miles). By contrast, the newly discovered necropolis...

The Guardian UK 1h ago

Deepest and most extensive whale graveyard discovered in Indian Ocean

Some remains found in Diamantina fracture zone date back more than 5m years and reveal species and ecosystems unknown to scienceThe oldest, deepest and most extensive whale graveyard yet discovered has been found in the south-eastern Indian Ocean, with fossils dating back more than 5m years. Whale falls – the term for dead whales that sink to the ocean floor – are not uncommon, but most have been found at depths of less than 4km (2.5 miles). By contrast, the newly discovered necropolis...

The Guardian Environment 1h ago