Failing to provide a severely injured zebra with adequate veterinary care, smacking a bison with a 5-foot stick, and leaving an agitated camel vulnerable to unmonitored public contact—these are just a few of the issues that prompted the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to slap the Triple W Exotic Animal Auction, held quarterly each year at the Wilson Horse & Mule Sale stockyard in Cookeville, Tennessee, with 15 citations for failing to meet even the minimum care standards required by the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA).

Bison in mud at a previous Triple W auction.

Exotic-animal auctions are nightmarish for animals, who are confined to cramped cages, traumatized by loud crowds, and denied adequate veterinary care.

PETA notes that Triple W has a long history of receiving USDA citations, including for failing to provide animals with adequate shelter during auctions held during inclement weather, keeping animals in cages with soiled bedding, failing to provide animals with potable water, and failing to provide injured animals with adequate veterinary care.

Bleeding capybara at a previous Triple W auction.

In September 2021, the USDA cited the auction for accepting over 40 animals from unlicensed dealers, and in May 2021, a zebra escaped from a Triple W event.

Please don’t fund the suffering of animals exploited for entertainment. Stay far away from wildlife auctions: Never buy any animals or attend an exotic-animal sale. Urge your friends, family members, and social media followers to do the same.

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