Catskill Game Farm Inc. was a family owned petting
zoo
A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility in which animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes.
The term ''zoological garden'' refers to zoo ...
in the town of
Catskill,
New York, United States, which operated from 1933 to 2006. The Game Farm closed permanently on
Columbus Day
Columbus Day is a national holiday in many countries of the Americas and elsewhere, and a federal holiday in the United States, which officially celebrates the anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas on October 12, 1492.
...
October 9, 2006, after seventy-three years of operation.
The property was purchased by new owners in 2012 and the former
giraffe barn has been developed into a hotel and opened in October 2019 following an extensive renovation of the existing building.
[http://www.hvmag.com/Abandoned-Catskill-Game-Farm-Zoo-Reopens/ Nicolette Sblano and Sabrina Sucato. A Massive, Abandoned Zoo Is Reborn in Catskill: The Catskill Game Farm experiences a rebirth as a campground, event space, and upstate destination, December 18, 2019.]
History: The Catskill Game Farm (1933-2006)
The Catskill Game Farm was opened in 1933 by Roland Lindemann and it was sold to his daughter Kathie Schulz in 1989.
In August 2006, the Catskill Game Farm announced that it would be closing on October 9th that year, ending over 70 years of operation citing declining business. Business peaked in the 1960s.
An auction was held in October 2006 to sell off equipment and animals.
The auction was held over two days and it attracted over 1,000 potential bidders from US, Canada and Mexico.
At first, it held only
deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...
,
donkeys, and
sheep
Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus '' Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated ...
. In 1958, the
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...
recognized Catskill Game Farm as a zoo, and it became the first privately owned venture to achieve such status. The collection was then allowed to grow more exotic, and at the time of its closing, it hosted roughly 2,000 animals representing over 150 species, imported from around the world.
The zoo spanned more than , most of which was used to breed animals for other zoos worldwide. Only about were available for public viewing, and then only in the summer and autumn.
April The Giraffe (Born 2002)
A
giraffe named April was born in 2002 at the Catskill Game Farm.
Upon the closing of the Catskill Game Farm in October 2006, April was first sold to
Adirondack Animal Land, in Vail Mills, New York; and then to Animal Adventure Park, in Harpursville, New York, in 2015, where she resided until her death on April 2, 2021.
April became known internationally when a live video of the late stages of her pregnancy, along with her birth, were published on the Internet in 2002.
Redevelopment
Ben and Cathy Ballone purchased the former Catskill Game Farm property in 2012. They established The Old Game Farm. They have been working to reopen the site as a family-oriented establishment once again, with the addition of a
B&B, campground, and
RV resort with animals.
The new owners have developed the former giraffe barn into a hotel. It was the home of several generations and families of giraffes, including April which was born there in 2002. The Inn opened on Tuesday, October 1, 2019, following an extensive renovation of the existing building.
The inn features five guest rooms and four campsites. An exhibit of memorabilia highlighting the history of the former Catskill Game Farm is displayed at the inn.
References
External links
Official Catskill Game Farm website(archived on October 4, 2006, five days before its closing, after seventy-three years of operation)
The Old Game Farm(Established 2012. Current owner's website)
Catskill Game Farm Set To Open Long Neck Inn(February 7, 2019. )
Further reading
* (Catskill Game Farm Photo Tour)
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Zoos in New York (state)
Catskills
Former zoos
Zoos established in 1933
Zoos disestablished in 2006
1933 establishments in New York (state)
2006 disestablishments in New York (state)