The owner of Sloth World Orlando says he will file for bankruptcy and will not open the attraction after more than 30 sloths died before the planned debut. Ben Agresta said Friday that the project was over and that he had no other options.
Thirteen of the surviving sloths were moved Friday morning from a warehouse on International Drive to the Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens, where staff said they will be quarantined for at least 30 days and checked by veterinarians. One of the sloths transferred was pregnant.
The zoo said it is taking temporary ownership of the animals while it works with the Species Survival Plan Program to place them long term at an AZA-accredited facility, though some may stay in orlando. The group includes Hoffmann’s two-toed sloths and Linnaeus’s two-toed sloths.
Agresta said the deaths were tied to a virus that showed barely any symptoms and could not be detected even after necropsy. He also said his staff of 22 ambassadors across multiple facilities had used every resource available and that no one on his team harmed the animals. In a statement Friday evening, he said there had been false and inaccurate information circulating about the sloths and insisted the losses could not have been prevented.
The collapse leaves no opening date and no attraction to come. For the surviving sloths, the immediate future is a month in quarantine and then a search for a permanent home — with the zoo saying some may remain there.
