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South Lakes Safari Zoo

South Lakes Safari Zoo
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Date opened 28 May 1994
Location Dalton-in-Furness, Cumbria, England
Coordinates 54°10′00″N 3°10′07″W / 54.1666°N 3.1686°W / 54.1666; -3.1686Coordinates: 54°10′00″N 3°10′07″W / 54.1666°N 3.1686°W / 54.1666; -3.1686
Land area 51-acre (21 ha)
No. of animals 1,000+ (pre expansion)
No. of species 150+ (pre expansion)
Memberships EAZA
Website southlakessafarizoo.com

South Lakes Safari Zoo (formerly South Lakes Wild Animal Park) is a 51-acre (21 ha) zoo established in 1994 by David Gill, and located in Cumbria, England. Named as such after its proximity to the Lake District it lies entirely within the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness on the outskirts of Dalton.

The owners of the zoo are David S. Gill and his third wife, Frieda Rivera-Schreiber, a former Miss Peru beauty pageant finalist. They retook their position as sole directors in July ?following an interim period in which four directors took over their positions, in order to comply with concerns raised by Barrow Borough Council regarding Gill's handling of the company.

Gill's first marriage was broken up in 1997 following Gill's affair with a 16-year-old handler; his wife consequently divorced him, and he entered a short marital relationship with the former handler. In 2008 Gill was stabbed by Richard Creary, a former rugby league player, who found him in bed with his wife. Creary admitted aggravated burglary and was jailed for five years.

Gill's current wife, Rivera-Schreiber has worked as a veterinary coordinator at the zoo since her 2014 marriage to Gill, despite being ineligible to operate on animals in the UK as she is not associated with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. An inspector's report noted that "The provision of veterinary care [at the zoo] ... has historically been poor", and her position as veterinary coordinator came under question.

Gill previously owned a zoo in North Queensland, Australia, for four years until it collapsed in 2005 with debts of more than £2 million. Until 2015, Gill operated a "dude ranch" in Wyoming, United States, which charged guests up to £1,627 per week to pretend to be cowboys; at the time, he was criticised for devoting too much time towards this hobby and not enough towards the running of South Lakes Safari Zoo.

In 2007, Gill stood for election for council representing the Conservative Party, but narrowly lost out.


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