‘Doc’ Antle Illegally Running Myrtle Beach Safari: PETA Calls on Feds to Shut It Down

For Immediate Release:
July 23, 2025

Contact:
David Perle 202-483-7382

In an urgent letter sent this morning to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), PETA is calling for an investigation into Myrtle Beach Safari for allowing Tiger King villain Bhagavan “Doc” Antle—who was recently sentenced to federal prison for conspiracy to commit wildlife trafficking and money laundering—to continue exhibiting wild animals and engaging customers in dangerous wildlife encounters without a license.

In 2023, following Antle’s previous state conviction of conspiracy to commit wildlife trafficking, the USDA denied his application for a federal exhibitor’s license—but had already approved a license for Sugriva Co. LLC, a company owned by one of his romantic partners. Since then, Antle has evidently continued to manage and operate Myrtle Beach Safari and exhibit animals under Sugriva’s license, including by leading hands-on encounters with an elephant named Bubbles and with juvenile chimpanzees. Antle and Myrtle Beach Safari let juvenile chimpanzees, who are taken from their mothers shortly after birth to be used in public encounters, hang onto children’s necks and shoulders. They let customers grab Bubbles’ trunk during photo ops and jump off her back while in the water with her. These encounters subject the animals to rough handling and potential disease transmission and subject customers, including children, to the risk of grievous injuries and even death.

“‘Doc’ Antle continues to illegally run the show at Myrtle Beach Safari, putting wild animals and the public at risk with his sordid circus-style photo ops,” says PETA Foundation General Counsel for Captive Animal Law Enforcement Brittany Peet. “PETA is calling on the USDA to shut down this roadside zoo, ensure that the animals are transferred to reputable facilities, and prevent Antle and his associates from ever exhibiting animals again.”

In nature, elephants stay with their families for their entire lives, but Bubbles, who was kidnapped from her African home decades ago, hasn’t had contact with another elephant in over 30 years. Studies also show that using baby chimpanzees in photo ops like Antle’s is harmful to conservation efforts, as it misleads people into thinking that chimpanzees make good “pets.”

PETA encourages everyone to never visit roadside zoos and to call on Congress to support the Captive Primate Safety Act, which would make it unlawful to breed or possess primates in private homes.

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 PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.