Two of Michael Jackson’s Giraffes Die
PETA recently learned that two of the giraffes the late Michael Jackson used to house at Neverland Ranch have died while living under the apparently neglectful eye of Tom and Freddie Hancock—owners of Banjoko Wildlife Preserve, a pseudo-sanctuary in Page, Arizona—and that at least one of the giraffes may have died as a result of improper feeding and/or exposure to cold temperatures.
Back in 2008, we wrote a letter to Michael Jackson urging him to take responsibility for four giraffes who once lived at Neverland Ranch after we received many complaints from citizens concerned about the giraffes’ well-being at their new home at the preserve. At the time, a former volunteer caretaker for the animals contacted us claiming that the giraffes had been kept in 15-foot-by-15-foot “temporary” enclosures since the day they were purchased in 2007.
Shortly before his death, the King of Pop started to clean up his act by planning to leave animals out of his London tour. Now, we’re asking the city of Page to confiscate the two remaining giraffes and relocate them to a facility that can provide them with appropriate care before it’s too late. Oh yes, we wanna be startin’ something.
Written by Logan Scherer
