roadside zoo

You are here:

You are here

Home / roadside zoo

Hearing under way to determine if Cricket Hollow owners should be held in contempt of judge's order

on Thu, 01/07/2021 - 03:41   by news

Owners of the troubled – and now closed – Cricket Hollow Zoo are again in court.

This time the owners of the roadside zoo near Manchester are facing charges they disobeyed the district court's December 2019 order that required them to turn over hundreds of animals for relocation by animal rescue personnel.

The trial of Pamela and Thomas Sellner on contempt charges began Wednesday (1/6/21) and is expected to conclude Tuesday in Iowa District Court in Delaware County. The case was filed a year ago, Jan. 8, 2020.

Workers remove hundreds of animals from troubled Cricket Hollow Zoo; nearly 200 others 'missing'

on Tue, 12/10/2019 - 20:59   by news

Approximately 100 animals were removed Monday (12/9) from the troubled Cricket Hollow Zoo near Manchester, but workers are still searching for some 200 others that were not found during the court-ordered animal rescue operation.

The roadside zoo owned by Pamela and Thomas Sellner was found in violation of Iowa animal cruelty standards by a Delaware County District Court judge November 24 and the judge ordered removal of the 300 exotic animals from the facility. The Sellners asked the Iowa Supreme Court to stay the removal order, but the high court denied the request December 4.

U.S. appellate court upholds decision to remove lemurs, tigers from troubled Cricket Hollow Zoo

on Wed, 04/11/2018 - 22:22   by news

The federal district court decision ordering the removal of lemurs and tigers from the troubled Cricket Hollow Zoo near Manchester, Iowa, last October was upheld today (4/11) by the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals.

The federal appellate court in St. Louis ruled that Lisa Kuehl, Tracey Kuehl, Nancy A. Harvey, John T. Braumann and the non-profit animal rights group, the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF), had legal standing to file the lawsuit to stop the mistreatment of the animals under the Endangered Species Act.

Cricket Hollow Zoo lions relocated to wildlife sanctuary after settlement of federal lawsuit

on Thu, 08/04/2016 - 05:04   by Editor

The two remaining endangered animals kept at Cricket Hollow Zoo – African lionesses named Jonwah and Njjarra – have been relocated to a wildlife sanctuary in Colorado after settlement of a federal court lawsuit filed against the zoo by the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) and five Iowa residents.

The Wild Animal Sanctuary in Colorado, with veterinary support from the Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines, took custody of the two lions after the settlement was reached with zoo owners Pam and Tom Sellner of Manchester, Iowa, according to a news release issued by the ALDF today (Aug. 3).

Judge orders lioness exam by animal rights group vet; sets expedited trial on lion removal from zoo

on Fri, 07/22/2016 - 01:31   by Editor

A federal judge today (July 21) ordered the examination of a Cricket Hollow Zoo lioness and set an expedited trial date for August 1 to determine if the two African lions should be permanently removed from the roadside zoo.

In an unusual telephone hearing, Chief Judge Linda Reade of the U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids ordered the zoo allow a Colorado veterinarian with experience in the care of lions examine the lioness Njjarra.

Special telephone court hearing set in legal effort to help sick lioness Njjarra at Cricket Hollow Zoo

on Wed, 07/20/2016 - 22:21   by Editor


Click on image above to view the video showing the two African lions at Cricket Hollow Zoo. The video was submitted as part of a court filing seeking immediate removal of the lions from the roadside zoo.

A special telephone hearing will be held Thursday (July 21) to determine if a lioness at Cricket Hollow Zoo should be removed immediately from the troubled roadside zoo, or if a "qualified veterinarian" should be allowed to examine, diagnosis and treat the animal.

The endangered African lion is one of two at the zoo, and a video taken June 24 shows the sick and emaciated lioness named Njjarra in her cage at Cricket Hollow.

Cricket Hollow Zoo lawsuit gets underway in federal court this week; bench trial expected to last a week

on Mon, 10/05/2015 - 00:33   by Editor

Testimony begins Monday (10/5) in a federal lawsuit seeking to remove endangered animals from the troubled Cricket Hollow Zoo near Manchester, Iowa.

The lawsuit by the Animal Defense Legal Fund (ADLF) and two Iowa residents alleges Cricket Hollow Zoo owners Pamela and Tom Sellner provide poor care for five tigers, three lemurs and two grey wolves on display at the roadside facility.

The bench trial before Chief Magistrate Judge Jon Stuart Scoles in U.S. District Court, Northern District, is expected to last a week.

Cricket Hollow Zoo inspection finds animals in mud so deep their legs sunk all the way into muck

on Tue, 09/01/2015 - 00:35   by Editor

More than three dozen camels, sheep, llamas and cattle at the Cricket Hollow Zoo near Manchester, Iowa where found living in enclosures with mud so deep their legs sunk half to all the way down into the muck, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) May inspection report.

USDA charges Cricket Hollow Zoo owners with inadequate vet care of animals, refusing access

on Sat, 08/15/2015 - 02:34   by Editor

Owners of the troubled Cricket Hollow Zoo near Manchester, Iowa, now face new federal charges of inadequate veterinary care of their animals and "repeated failures to meet minimum standards for animal facilities and husbandry."

May inspection of Cricket Hollow Zoo prompted suspension; appeal keeps findings confidential

on Fri, 07/10/2015 - 19:59   by Editor

The federal inspection of Cricket Hollow Zoo in May found something troubling enough to temporarily suspend the facility's license, but exactly what prompted the closure won't be known until an appeal of the findings is complete later this month.

Subscribe to roadside zoo
Go to top