Guzoo- From The Closure Forward

Albertan animal welfare advocates say that Guzoo Animal Farm owner, Lynn Gustafson, is attempting to '"shift the blame" for the closure of the facility, and the possible fate of Guzoo's animals, to the government and to advocates themselves.

Mr. Gustafson hasn't accepted offers of assistance to relocate the animals to accredited sanctuaries, and has recently spoken of euthanizing Guzoo's animals.

"If the Guzoo owner kills his animals for the sake of the almighty dollar, let it be clear that this will not be the fault of the citizens who asked the government to investigate Guzoo. There are homes available to the Guzoo animals and a full commitment of funding to get them there," said Devon McDonald, a founder of CAAWPS, Concerned Albertans for Animal Welfare and Public Safety.

McDonald was referring to hints made earlier this week by Lynn Gustafson, that Guzoo animals would have to be euthanized or sold to a taxidermist to make income for the family.

At the start of the 60-day conditional zoo permit, before the final announcement, Gustafon stated to the CBC: "If they decided in their wisdom not to renew my permits, well then I would have to dispense with the licensed animals like your tigers, lions. %u2026 I would have to dispose of them."

"We are extremely skeptical that Guzoo admission prices were the only source of 'livelihood' for the Guzoo owner," said CAAWPS' Lauren Johnston. "When the Guzoo owners wanted to attract sympathy and volunteers, they claimed that the facility didn't make enough money to support it. Now that Guzoo has been shut down, they say that the government is preventing their family from earning a living."

"It really strikes us as playing on people's sympathies."

Johnston also referred to the fact that Canadian zoo watchdog organization, ZooCheck, has promised, in writing, to re-home the Guzoo animals to accredited sanctuaries at no expense to the Guzoo owners.

"We at ZooCheck have affirmed and re-affirmed our promise that we will pay the full costs of re-location," said Julie Woodyer, spokesperson for ZooCheck Canada. "The Guzoo owner just seems to be taking a stubborn attitude and saying 'If I can't have my animals, nobody can.'"

ZooCheck has released reports over the years documenting many failures of the Guzoo Animal Farm to meet basic standards of animal care, as judged by veterinarians and zoo experts.

While McDonald and Johnston agree that much legwork has to be done in the 60 days following the government-ordered decommission of Guzoo, rescues and sanctuaries have stepped up to offer their services to re-home the animals.

"We need to face reality. The Guzoo is over. The Alberta government gave a damning report saying that the facility was a failure in every category of zoo standards. We stand a far better chance of re-homing all the Guzoo animals if we don't delay," says Johnston.

Rescue And Sanctuary for Threatened Animals (RASTA), near Calgary, is one of many sanctuaries that have offered to take in Guzoo animals. RASTA recently informed Alberta SPCA of their offer to home and transport animals.

CAAWPS recently sent a letter to the Guzoo owners offering its own support and volunteer work to re-home the animals, saying that "humane reasons" require the Guzoo animals' re-homing rather than sale. The letter has since gone unanswered.

"The GuZoo Animal Farm cannot exist without donation dollars." Would you give an animal to someone who could not afford to feed it?!

"There is only one place, right here," he said. "That's where they are going to stay." Horders never like to part with their "things" doesn't mean they shouldn't...

"By choosing not to renew our permit, our government as sealed the fate and ended the lives of over 20 beautiful and healthy animals." Really?! Not taking care of the animals and obeying the laws didn't come into play at all? Failing ALL 108 areas of the zoo standards had nothing to do with it. The blood lies with Guzoo should any be spilled.

"A taxidermist offered to do one of every one of my species that had to go. I thought, 'Why not?' That's what we had them for all these years," said Gustafson. Wow. Just WOW. They've had them all these years to simply kill them... how nice.

And the tasteless, horrible quotes keep spewing forth from the mouth of this man, his supporters and his family... Animals DESERVE better!

Instead of cooperating and allowing the gov't to rehome and move these animals to places they can thrive, Guzoo stands by and further spits in the faces of the gov't meant to enforce the laws, the rules we are all to abide by. Pissing all over the province and the country Guzoo defies everything.

They have sought becoming a church, a sancutuary of all things. (Would you kill your worshippers when they stopped bringing you money? He will...) They have tried barring the gov't from their grounds. They have stated this is an infraction against their rights (what about the rights of the animals they hold hostage?!) and on and on the bs goes! There latest attempt being a judicial reveiw which has allowed them to reopne their doors, and continue to run this hell till at least January!

Just a few facts:

They refuse to listen to "Communist Alberta" and the laws that we are all to listen to.

They place the blame squarely on the "animal rights terrorists" instead of upon their own shoulder's where it belongs. They blame the gov't for being too heavy handed! They don't think they were given a fair chance (did you need 100 years? Almost a quarter century wasn't enough).

Guzoo should have closed it's doors a long, long time ago. The doors were closed, but that doesn't mean those poor animals need to die on the ground they suffered upon. Help give these animals voices, tell the gov't allowing Guzoo to continue is not alright. The animals need to be seized so that no more are sold to the highest bidder, no more are poisoned by stupidity, and no other babies are ripped from their mothers paws before their eyes are even open. No more cubs are swung around on rabies poles. No more torture. No more pain. Gov't you listening? We demand action. Proof you ever really gave a damn.