PETA Statement: This Week’s CEO Shake-Up Not Enough to Clean Up SeaQuest Mess

For Immediate Release:
August 8, 2024

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

As waves of reports about animal deaths and customer injuries continue to roll in from SeaQuest sites across the country, SeaQuest CEO Vince Covino has announced that he’s quitting the company. Current Chief Financial Officer Aaron Neilsen will reportedly take his place for now. Below, please find a statement from PETA Foundation General Counsel Brittany Peet:

Good riddance to Vince Covino, whose sleazy petting zoos are responsible for scores of animals’ deaths, but moving the money man into the top spot shows that SeaQuest will keep prioritizing profits over animal protection. Since SeaQuest locations in Colorado, Connecticut, and Georgia closed down under pressure from PETA and the public, the chain needs to read the writing on the wall, shut its doors, and send the animals to reputable facilities.

PETA’s ongoing campaign against SeaQuest has included numerous complaints filed with federal and state authorities regarding many injuries to customers and egregious animal welfare issues, including animals who drowned, were burned, were intentionally deprived of food, or were stomped or crushed to death by customers, among other horrors. SeaQuest Littleton in Colorado shut down in February 2024, and SeaQuest Trumbull in Connecticut and SeaQuest Stonecrest in Georgia both shut down in 2023. PETA also helped prevent SeaQuest from opening locations in Florida, New York, and North Dakota.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to use for entertainment or abuse in any other way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow the group on X, Facebook, or Instagram.