Sanford zoo takes on 13 sloths rescued from Sloth World

Sloth World owner Ben Agresta reached out to the Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens in a time of crisis.

Inside Climate News broke the story that 31 sloths died as Agresta sought to open a tourist attraction on Orlando’s International Drive. A lawmaker was calling for a federal investigation and the public outcry was fierce. Agresta pivoted and scrapped his plans to open Sloth World and instead planned to file for bankruptcy, according to media reports.

So Agresta asked Central Florida Zoo CEO Richard Glover this question: Would you be interested in a donation of 13 sloths?

At first, Glover said he felt the excitement of the zoo being asked to step up to help.

“In a situation like this, this is what we exist for,” Glover said. 

The zoo had often been called in emergencies, like when the state seized bears that somebody had dangerously kept as pets.

But 13 sloths? The situation was unprecedented for the zoo, Glover acknowledged. 

And in what shape would the survivors be in?

Many Sloth World animals died, suffering from stress in a windowless warehouse that at one point had no heat after they had been taken from their jungle homes.

Would this be too much for the zoo to handle?

The zoo was operated by a nonprofit and wasn’t flush with cash. Daytime zoo attendance was down slightly from last year amid Floridians’ affordability struggles. Taking in the sloths meant the zoo would be hit with a significant and unplanned budget expense.

And would the zoo have enough room for the sloths? The males and females would need to be separated. The last thing the zoo needed was anymore sloths. 

With all that swirling, Glover said yes. The zoo would take them.

The staff quickly got to work.

Zoo employees cleaned enclosures and put branches cut off zoo trees to make the sloths’ space more natural. Staff bought special formula sloth food, “more than we have ever purchased before,” Glover said, since the zoo’s prior sloth, an older female, had died earlier this year.

The Sloth World sloths arrived Friday in rough shape. They were dehydrated and hadn’t been fed properly, Glover said.

“They are all fighting to survive and my team is doing everything we can to fight to help them,” Glover said of the sloths, which included adults and a baby under a year old.

Bandit, who had been named by Sloth World, was worse than the others.

By the second day, Bandit was weakening and was lethargic. He didn’t want to eat on his own. By Monday morning, he seemed stronger, a hopeful sign at least.

“We really need him to start showing more signs of more energy and more strength soon because it’s definitely still what I’d call touch and go,” Glover said.

The zoo staff knew in an instant that the animals’ conditions could deteriorate. Glover knew the reality: some may not survive.

What makes sloths unique from other animals is they don’t have a fight or flight capability. So they internalize their stress, which leads to problems with their gastrointestinal system, causing diarrhea and bloating. Their digestion is slow, so fixing their stomach issues takes time.

The zoo took the sloths to outdoor cages to quarantine for the next 30 days, to make sure they have no diseases to spread to the other zoo animals.

Being outdoors and in the sun seemed to help the sloths as they are kept quiet, away from the public.

Staff check on the sloths hourly.

“We’re trying to keep as few people as possible going in and out, and it’s the same people over and over. And we’re trying to keep as minimal noises, disturbances, surprises, new things because all of those things create extra stress to a group of animals that are already pretty highly stressed,” Glover said. “Our goal right now is to give them as calm and routine a day as we can.”

The situation is not dire enough for anyone to stay overnight with the sloths, Glover said. The zoo is going to install night cameras to monitor them overnight and security also walks by them.

So far during the first three nights at the zoo, all the sloths, including Bandit, have survived.

The zoo is awaiting more blood tests to diagnose the sloths as the waiting game for survival continues on.

“Each night that they’re here with us, the odds are better for them,” Glover said. “We have to prepare ourselves emotionally that we probably will lose some and we’re going to fight every way we can for that not to happen. But we have to go in with that mindset. Otherwise it would be too hard.”

As for what happens next, the zoo has reached out to the Association of Zoos and Aquariums to help find homes for the sloths that are healthy enough to travel. The sloths that are too medically fragile will remain at the zoo.

Returning home to the jungle of Peru is impossible, Glover said. The Sloth World animals could spread diseases to the wild animals. It would also be dangerous for the sloths to make such a long trip back home, especially given the vulnerable medical state many are in.

The story of the sloths and their rescue at the zoo has generated an emotional response from the public. Some people pledged to throw a karaoke fundraiser, while a local Boy Scout is raising money. 

“We are getting messages from all over the country, and we know that the story has gone international,” Glover said as the zoo posts daily updates on social media.

“All the support we’re getting, all the kind words and certainly the people that are donating, any of that, it just means so much to the team. … That’s the kind of thing that really helps prop the team up and know that look, we’re doing something that’s really important, not just to us and these animals, but to a whole lot of people.”

To donate to the zoo’s efforts, visit this link.