EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – Just six months after its grand opening, Jungle Reef, also known as the Hands-On Touch Aquarium, located at the Shoppes at Solana mall, is under scrutiny.
Over a dozen people have taken to social media to share concerns about the conditions in which the animals are kept.
Visitors have posted on platforms like Google Reviews and Yelp, voicing concerns primarily about the well-being of the animals. One former employee made a post on Reddit, claiming to “uncover some of the truths” about the conditions at the facility.
“It was just in there with a concrete floor, nowhere to climb, nowhere to jump,” the former employee, who does not want to be identified said, describing the living conditions of Zabu, a ring-tailed lemur who used to live at the aquarium.
John Hepworth, one of four brothers who owns Jungle Reef, gave KTSM a tour of the facility and addressed the allegations. Hepworth says he has been involved with animals since he was 11 years old, and he and his brothers wanted to bring a unique concept to El Paso.
“We brought Zabu in with plans to bring another one (lemur) because they’re social creatures,” Hepworth said.
“But by time the USDA came, they had so many notes on what we needed to do to fix the exhibit. It wasn’t worth putting Zabu through that,” Hepworth said.
According to documents posted on the USDA’s website, a routine inspection revealed that the facility’s environmental enhancement plan was incomplete and did not address the needs of an animal exhibiting signs of stress. Hepworth confirmed that Zabu was rehomed, though Zabu was not the only animal mentioned in the USDA reports.
“The rabbits are actually supposed to be separate from all the other animals, but they had them in the barn with two goats, a couple of tortoises, and a porcupine,” the former employee said.
“On one of my last days there, after I had put in my two-week notice, a visitor came up to me and told me that one of the rabbits seemed like it was dead,” the former employee said.
Hepworth explained that the rabbits were among many animal donations the aquarium receives. The last rabbits, he said, were taken home by the former employee who resigned.
Another concern raised by both the former employee and Hepworth was with the aquarium’s sea life touch tanks. Despite having employees monitoring the station, Hepworth said things did not work out as planned.
“Kids were pulling the animals out of the water, squeezing them too tight,” Hepworth said. “We had to switch gears. I think that speaks to my love and care for my animals. If I didn’t care, I would just keep putting chocolate chip starfish in there, keep putting crustaceans in there, because that’s what people are paying for,” Hepworth said.
One of the main concerns raised in several Google reviews was the lack of experience among the employees handling the animals.
One review said: “The employees don’t have any experience in handling animals.” The former employee we spoke to confirmed that this was her first job working with animals, and she had no prior experience.
“There really wasn’t any interview for me,” the former employee said. “I was given a recommendation, and all I had to do was fill in my bank information on the site they use and register for their messaging app.”
When asked about employee training, Hepworth said: “A lot of it is hands-on, to be honest with you. But they also have logs to fill out, and we have a husbandry captain who’s here all the time.”
The former employee not only questioned the care of the animals but also how employees are rotated between stations daily. She claimed the stress eventually led her to leave, and she said many other employees have also left, with some too scared to come forward because of non-disclosure agreements.
Hepworth addressed the issue of non-disclosure agreements. “A non-disclosure agreement is a very common practice among most businesses. Especially in the animal world, because when you come into a business like this, there is a lot of like things of how we do things here and how we take care of our patients, stuff like that. So within my rights as my intellectual property, because I do own all these animals, I own all these exhibits. It’s protection for us,” Hepworth said.
As for the overall condition of Jungle Reef, Hepworth invited people to visit and judge for themselves.
“Let people decide for themselves. If you have concerns about Jungle Reef and animal cruelty, come check it out for yourself,” he said. “Remember, who is the police of Jungle Reef? Ask yourself, who is getting these guys in trouble if they really are engaging in animal cruelty? Well, it’s the USDA and Animal Services.”
Hepworth said that the aquarium is currently in compliance with USDA guidelines. While not claiming perfection, he said they have fixed everything Animal Services required.
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