The USDA said two animals died while others suffered from neglect in several inspections at the popular McClain Lodge on Holly Bush Road in Rankin County.
The USDA fined McClain Lodge $16,000 in January 2022 for violating the Animal Welfare Act. The citation reports:
* An adult female giraffe died on December 10, 2020. The report states:
The necropsy report revealed that the cause of death was severe parasitism by intestinal parasites causing blood loss (anemia) and protein loss (hypoproteinemia). The weather in the weeks leading up to the animal death was cold and the giraffe barn failed to provide adequate heat for the local climate conditions. The attending veterinarian for the facility concurred that the cold exposure may have contributed to the death of the female giraffe.
* Unfortunately, the giraffe was not the only animal to die at McClain Lodge. A Red River hog died due to hypothermia:
On November 17, 2020, an adult female Red River hog (“Stinky”) was found non-responsive and seizing in the outdoor enclosure. Facility employees brought the animal to an inside enclosure to provide warmth and medication, but later returned the animal to the outdoor enclosure. On November 25, 2020, the same animal was found to be non-active, convulsing and cold in the outdoor enclosure. For a second time, facility employees brought the animal to an indoor enclosure to provide warmth and medical treatment.
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| Source: McLain Lodge website |
One might think the staff ensured the hog was protected from the cold at this point but such was not the case:
On November 30, 2020, an adult female, Red River hog was found non-responsive with very slight reflex. Facility employees brought the animal to an indoor enclosure to provide warmth and medication. Approximately ninety minutes later, the animal died. A necropsy was not performed, but the attending veterinarian confirmed that the cause of death was likely hypothermia.
* Inspectors found more violations although thankfully no more animals died. A bison gored a zebra, leaving a hole one to two inches in diameter. The staff placed the zebra back in the same area.
The report states on May 12, 2021, inspectors discovered a grey rabbit holding her right ear down while shaking her head. A prompt examination revealed the ear was filled with "dark brown debris" while thick scabs "covered the inside surface of the ear. The edges of the ear were visibly red." However, ear problems are common in rabbits (as they are in other animals such as Cocker Spaniels.).
McClain passed the March 2022 inspection but unfortunately for the animals, inspectors found more violations in September 2022:
* Sanitation? What's sanitation? There is no sense in rewriting this part of the report when it spells it out so well:
A live rat and a large amount of rodent droppings were present in the feed shed, where feed and medication is stored, and where a wallaby and a lemur were housed. Two bags of feed had holes in the them with rodent droppings nearby. There were rodent droppings over large areas of the floor and on a counter top. Rodents can cause contamination and spoilage of feed, and rodents can carry diseases that are harmful to animals. Correct by 11/1/22 by establishing and maintaining a safe and effective program for the control of pests including rodents.
Unfortunately, other animals suffered from poor sanitation.
Two adult wart hogs did not have clean drinking water. Their water had "a large amount of brown organic material" as well as "bright green clumps of algae on the water surface." The water in the drinking was cloudy and brown (No, the water is not piped in from Jackson.). The staff said the water drinkers were cleaned "2-3 days ago." Zoo experts told JJ such drinkers should be cleaned daily. The staff cleaned the drinkers and provided clean water while the inspectors were present.
* Poor little lemur. McClain acquired a four-month old lemur two months prior to the inspection. The lemur was placed in solitary confinement, er, make that a small enclosure with only a rope for play. The only enrichment for the baby lemur was "daily handling by keepers." The inspectors said such primates require socialization and play with other primates at such a young age. The USDA ordered McLain to "update the enrichment plan" by October 1, 2022.
* Unfortunately, the baby was not the only suffering lemur. The staff housed an adult female ring-tail lemur in the feed shed that was 90 degrees during inspection although the small wall AC unit read 67 degrees. The temperature should be kept between 64 and 84 degrees. The inspector ordered staff to correct the temperature within a week.
The inspector also reported records were incomplete for 34 animals.
Inspectors returned on December 15, 2022 and found no violations.
55 comments:
Zoos, outdoor parks, or whatever you want to call them are cruel and should be outlawed. Wildlife does not exist for human entertainment or curiousity.
As bad as this is, the Jackson Zoo is even worse for the animals that are trapped there.
Is it 12:44? Do you have proof, or are you just shitting on Jackson because you think a story centered in Brandon is a good opportunity to do so? Get a life, kid.
This is what happens when rednecks & money mix.
No wonder Todd Mardis is a fan of this place.
This is the type of publicity you can't buy-
Thanks for posting this KF. I like the concept of McLain's Lodge in the area, but if they have too many animals to properly care for or if they just cannot provide proper care for the animals then the animals should not be made to suffer.
Good reporting. I doubt this makes the local news.
So, it was never about Jackson. The entire state cannot be trusted to husband animals properly. Probably because of minimal salaries and an inability to hire qualified people to work earning those salaries.
Attn 1:08 P M. Don’t blame 12:44 P.M. for your poor decision to live in Jackson!
All the streaming liberal tears for poor Br'er Rabbit and his dirty ears....while pedophiles buy and sell children at the border like candy with the assistance of "the feds". Pigs shitting in their water...what an atrocity...here in Jackistan we got other humans shittin' in ours.
McClain’s has no business acquiring exotic animals. They are not equipped to properly house or care for them. It sounds like they don’t have staff properly trained to care for farm animals, much less exotics!
Basically it works like this. Folks go into business doing something (in this case showing off animals to paying customers like a zoo or safari). However, based upon the business model, there really isn't enough revenue to do it correctly. Correctly in this case might mean the proper number of employees, qualifications of employees, number of vet visits, costs of enclosures and habitats, etc. So in order to make money, they cut back on expenses and the animals suffer. It happens in businesses every day.
Who are the owners?
Do they bear any responsibility?
Or can they just blame it on their lazy incompetent (apparently- not an allegation! OPINION!! I mean, who could have known animals could die if you don't properly care for them?? ) staff?
Or are they innocent due to all having bad cases of affluenza?
McClain's was originally established as a place for game hunting, but turned into a zoo because hunting animals acquired specifically for hunting was distasteful.
https://www.wlbt.com/story/24513581/some-rankin-county-residents-upset-about-proposed-game-preserve/
"A live rat and a large amount of rodent droppings were present in the feed shed, where feed and medication is stored, and where a wallaby and a lemur were housed. Two bags of feed had holes in the them with rodent droppings nearby"
Tell me you've never been around a feed shed without telling me you've never been around a feed shed. I do think that the animals there are not cared for as well as they should, but rats in feed sheds and holes in the bags are not that out of place....now all of this next to a restaurant is a little suspect.
That's what I'm saying, 2:44. Try living on a farm.
Does Cuhmissshunr Big Hat Andy's krewe at AG have anything to do with regualting thangs like this?
Maybe some naked PETA chicks will protest it.
1:08, I do have proof, and I filed a formal complaint with the USDA last year. I have a good life, and those animals at the Jackson Zoo do not. Go look for yourself.
The inspectors are around HUNDREDS of feed sheds. And not just hick farm ones. Every USDA and FDA guy is very familiar with rats, rat shit, rat hairs, and rat to human diseases. On a fairly regular basis, they catch shit from farms and ships and terminals and lots. And you would too if "LiberaLtarians" had their way. Hell, they'll come out with their UV lights and show you the rat piss and rat shit headed for your "fine dining" meal. They just give a shit that basic rules are attempted, even for animals the owner might prefer to shoot and stuff to demonstrate his manliness and higher social class.
This is basic governing stuff. Or what Chris McDaniel might call Jackbooted Thugs and Massive Government Overreach.
Or is this McClain who was STUNNED he had to have a Dang GubMint permit for his Shoot a Zebra Farm plans when he buys land along a waterway or wants to have a Zippedy Zoo Dah ranch on 390 acres of flood plain? Dang GubMint! Not letting us "stalk" the wily giraffe, "harvest" an African antelope down near a subdivision,, or discuss, over a fine wine, the terminal ballistics needed to drop a 100 pound zoo animal in the wrong place at the wrong time.
GubMint "interfering with mah "rights" yet again.
And yes I have attended a rat killing and was hauling hay when you were still playing games at lily white school. That's Rat. I read them their Miratda Rights first and gave them a good Chratsian burial. If I didn't feed them to Snots first. Time to whip up the little women some ratatouille. From that feed shed.
Wow all of the thinly veiled racist comments that are so common about the problems at the zoo seem to be strangely absent here today.
And people have the nerve to talk about the Jackson Zoo! I can not recall not ONE time our zoo was written up for such negligence!!! Not having clean water and heat?!! You have got to be kidding me!!! Jackson Zoo may not be in the best area, but we damn sure are not neglecting our animals!
@4:33 Guarantee you can show not one USDA, AZA nor ZAA report showing were The Jackson Zoo was cited for the death of an animal due to negligence! I’ll even go further and ask for proof where the Jackson Zoo was cited for animals not having clean water! I’ll wait…..!
Justice for Stinky!!
How many of these redneck critics have even been? The drive through safari is awesome. Very educational and the animals appear to be well taken care of. Get off your soap box and drive through.
"The entire state cannot be trusted to husband animals properly."
Move to Alabama if you want to be a husband to your farm animals.
5:04 day drinking again.
The USDA is practicing plantation politics, and they're acting like a patriarchal overseer.
The lodge should hold a press conference and demand restorative justice.
mclains lodge is where dogpatch meets lion country safari.
and fails miserably on both counts.
what a green teeth redneck the owner must be.
@5:04, Just relax on the couch and tell me about your relationship with your mother when you were a child.
I have mixed emotions about this place, but the following post takes the cake!
Anonymous said...
"The entire state cannot be trusted to husband animals properly."
Move to Alabama if you want to be a husband to your farm animals."
I will freely admit I don’t know anything about proper care of exotic animals and whether or not giraffes and Red River hogs need heat or not. I’m guessing they may since at least the giraffe is native to a pretty damn warm place. But otherwise, most “regular” farm animals survive a lot of winters with no protection from the elements at all, just like wild animals do.
However, the hand wringing over a rat getting in feed is pretty silly. That’s what rats and mice do. Sounds like they need a couple of good cats around there. However, if they set traps overnight and rats are caught and survive till the next morning till someone comes to dispatch them, are we going to get a story update about how cruel McClain is to the poor rats?
I can’t help but wonder how manny animals do they have that are in perfectly good condition? What percentage of the total number of animals on this place do the few mentioned here represent? Judging by the photograph, seems like overall it must be a very small percentage.
Personally I would withhold judgement on the owners without any more information than given in a report by some USDA inspectors, who have no Constitutional authority to inspect anything in any state anyway. Generally federally employed bureaucrats are mostly useless and what they think is important isn’t relevant to the real world.
When the legislature added McClain Lodge to the bill allowing alcohol sales for the Pearl River Area, I felt this is just how we roll. PRV residents pushed for this in petitions, could not go anywhere without an older gent wanting me to sign, I signed but did not get to vote as live 1/2 mile outside PRV, thankfully. No mention of businesses outside the PRV, confident those wanting better dining did not think of McLain.
Not a patron but I appreciate a business in the area, as I do all businesses employing people.
No excuse for these animal issues and the fine is token.
Agree 100% 7:09!!
Not sure what you're saying or concluding 7:34 and I read it twice. Who cares where you live or whether you're glad about it? McLains is a fine place to eat with real nice private booth type tables for privacy if you want that. Great steaks and other specialties. And the foyer has a large assortment of goodies, specialty foods and things to take home.
Since you're not a patron of fine places to dine, here's hoping you like the snack aisle at your nearby Dollah-Gentral out in your neck-O-the-woods.
My families farm has existed since 1773.
There are no rats and never have been in the feed room or in the barn.
Who are you people? Apparently, you don't know how to take care of business!
For the sake of the clueless who have "rats" tearing the bags in their feed rooms,my family has had metal feed bins for hundreds of years. And we have "barn" cats. We also keep up maintenance of our buildings.
2:16pm likely has best guess for underlying issues: Insufficient profit from insufficient revenue led to reduction of staff and quality of care.
Gossip Blog to tear successful people down! Hate Blog
Some of you are fixated on hating Jackson and like to assume those who live here are " lesser humans".
Those of us who chose to stay do not like spending so much of our time in a car. We like that we have services and amenities you don't have.
I lived in Madison. I gained three hours a day to enjoy life when I moved to Jackson. My time is valuable.
My neighbors are successful people who have good manners and look after one another. It's called being " thoughtful and considerate".
I don't venture in to the high crime areas. I'm not out after midnight. I've never once been " at risk". There is zero crime in my neighborhood .
The irony is many of my Madison friends visit cities that have far worse crime and are clueless about where NOT to go. They go to Alaska where your chance of being murdered is the highest in the Nation.
A carjacker can have my car...it's insured but he won't steal mine...too easy to spot. It's not a Toyota or Camry.
I like New Stage and events at Talia Mara and having many non-chain restaurants nearby.I like so many things including, medicine when anyone in the family is sick, are delivered.
And, I've the funds to deal with short term problems.
It seems to me that some of you must have very limited coping skills to be so angry and upset all the time ...especially about things that shouldn't concern you as they don't affect you.
It actually speaks ill of you. Tend to your own business, enjoy the drive and construction. Get that tornado shelter plan in place.
Oh my, I thought that was filet mignon that I ate there.
8:15am demonstrates "false dichotomy" aka "false choice" logic fallacy: ie, if one does not eat at Maclain's, one therefore eats at a dollar store, therefore Maclain's is fine dining.
Of course the argument is absurd but "false dichotomy", among other logic fallacies, are a favorite of Obama, Lamumba and other deceitful politicians.
@9:17
Don’t kid yourself. Right wing nutjobs are just as prone to logical fallacy as the left. The problem is right wingers are absolutely more dangerous.
The Dogpatch was bought by Bass Pro Shop.
Where is Greenville going to get a homecoming queen with her in jail?
Leave it to the racists to drag the Jackson Zoo into it but since they are, let's compare.
The Jackson Zoo has been dinged by the USDA a few times. The USDA cited it in October for a staffing shortage. Other citations have been for items such as overgrown vegetation or parts of structures that were rusted, etc.
The Jackson Zoo was NOT cited for actual care of the animals or their food as McClain's has been. The USDA. has not cited the Jackson Zoo for the death of animals.
McLain's is a very nice facility. I sincerely hope the place succeeds. It provides a valuable cultural attraction to the Jackson metro area and is much more kid-friendly than the Jackson Zoo. The restaurant is quite good although do we really need a singer WITH AN AMPLIFIER AND A SPEAKER in such a small restaurant? The singer is fine. The loudness is not when you are trying to enjoy a good meal and a good meal they serve.
As for the comments using farms as an example, well, that's why y'all are Mississippi. Leave to the rednecks to say it's just like a farm, blah, blah blah. Well, that is the purpose of having standards and inspections for Class C License holders- so it is NOT like a farm. One can only imagine what the same people would say if the same citation was issued for the Jackson Zoo instead of ML.
Not approving comment as I see some are trying to. hijack this thread into the ole Jen v burbs debate in ways that has nothing to do with the subject at hand.
Seems to be someone is butt hurt that McClain opened their own place for animals instead of backing an existing place.
Also, they have not had live music for almost 2 years now ... they have someone playing a piano and have had that for quite some time. Maybe come out for another visit, you know as much about the music as the animals, seems to me. Hundreds of animals and a handful of incidents. Give me a break. Old news for something that happened over a year ago and zero citations this past year.
I used to work at McClain early in the safari’s development. It was a shitshow. The amount of animal death they strait up covered up, the lack of shelter they build for the animals in the field, the lack of care given to the animals that would constantly fight and the lack of concern about how the wet terrain was causing hood problems in the animals. They didn’t care about the needs of animals, just about if they were alive and could be seen. They had a back room rabbit breeding facility that was disgusting and cramped, where guests couldn’t see the treatment. This was before most of the major exotic animals, and they could barely care for them, so knowing they got more and caused their deaths isn’t that surprising. We rarely cleaned out water. Rarely had the vet come check on them. The staff on the ground was mostly fresh out of high school, and the majority of the job focused around giving tours and filling guests needs, not caring for animals. Any concerns by staff was waved away. Often times, if you cared about an animal limping or injured, you would have to find time outside of your tours to check on it, as they wouldn’t check on them. They don’t even have a place to quarantine or separate animals if there is a fight. Not to mention the amount of money they make from feed alone could pay for a majority of these problems. A majority of the cost of feed buckets are just money in McClain’s pocket, as their giant silo of feed is just $100.
Also, the problem a lot of people don’t understand is that a lot of exotics have extra needs farm animals don’t. Cows, pigs and other domesticated animals have been bred to meet our needs, be durable and live in all kinds of climates. Giraffes aren’t build to withstand the cold, so they will need warm shelter. Other animals can catch deadly diseases that are passed from rats, which is why zoos are so strict about keeping their food up and away from rats. Comparing a safari like this to your farm just shows you barely know anything about animals in the first place.
It is the owners fault. The staff is underpaid and not trained to handle animals of any kind, let alone such a wide array with different needs, the basic needs of the animals (food, shelter, water & socialization) aren’t met, and the vet only visits once a month.
How do zoos work? The staff in still kinda underpaid, but are required to have years of experience to work there, all needs must be met, including enrichment and privacy, and vets are on location, allowing them to check on animals daily and keep an eye on animals they have concerns about.
You can’t run an operation this big like a hands-free farm. You got to actually know what your doing. All of the deaths of the animals there were avoidable, if only anyone there cared about the animals beyond making money off them. If they could, McClains would charge to look at the bodies.
"8:15am demonstrates "false dichotomy" aka "false choice" logic fallacy: ie, if one does not eat at Maclain's, one therefore eats at a dollar store, therefore Maclain's is fine dining."
Thanks for your excellent recitation of several types of fallacies. Actually, the gent who was criticizing the place suggests he lives in the area. As there are several Dollah-Gentrals out that way, one might assume he has more than once frequented them. He's quick to suggest "I ain't never ate there", so I'm quick to suggest he has perhaps dined at the peanut isle at The Gentral. Otherwise, stick-it, snoot.
And it's logical fallacy, not 'logic fallacy'.
Thanks 4:13, 'logical' rather than 'logic' fallacy is more correct: I prefer 'logic fallacy' nevertheless.
The building design was nice, food mediocre.
This site is a joke. You can’t even spell the name correctly of the place your writing the article about. Your being really critical of these people and the way they treat their animals, when you are the writer of a blog and can’t even spell the name correctly of the business you are writing about.
My family and I have been to McClain many times and have enjoyed it every time. The animals all look healthy and very well taken care of, We have even spoken to employees and seen them taking care of the animals. I am all for taking care of animals and giving them the best care possible, but I also know how the government operates and how they inspect. Funny you didn’t mention any current write ups.
I’m no animal expert but don’t warthogs live in Africa and drink nasty water that other animals defecate in?
As far as how much better the Jackson zoo is, I know for a fact they have had countless citations, and lost many animals, including all their giraffes in less than a two week period. Our safety is also a huge factor there. It seems like you would try to help businesses in the area instead of tearing them down, especially this day and time. Shame on you!
I have never been to the place. Can you do like they do at a lobster place and pick out the animal you want on the drive in?
@9:09 Say you're the owner of McClain without saying you're the owner
Me and my inexplicably green teeth would just like to say welcome back 9:03.
Pleased your mom paid your interweb bill! We have missed your bizarre colorful dental description.
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