31 Sloths Die Before Florida Attraction’s Opening, State Report Finds Thirty-one sloths intended for a fresh attraction in Orlando died before the facility could open, according to a report released by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). The deaths occurred between December 2024 and February 2025, with the animals succumbing to unsuitable conditions during transit and while housed in a warehouse awaiting transfer to the planned exhibit. The FWC investigation revealed that 21 sloths shipped from Guyana in December 2024 died due to cold exposure in an unheated warehouse. The facility lacked basic utilities, including water and electricity, prior to the animals’ arrival. Whereas space heaters were later acquired, they were powered via extension cords from another building, which tripped a fuse and left the warehouse without heat on the night the animals died. The minimum recorded temperature that night was approximately 46 degrees Fahrenheit. A second group of 10 two-toed sloths arrived from Peru in February 2025. Two were found dead upon arrival, and the remaining eight, described as emaciated, later died due to health complications linked to poor care during transit and holding. The sloths were destined for “Sloth World,” a proposed permanent, public exhibit in Orlando marketed as a rainforest-inspired habitat designed exclusively for sloth well-being. The attraction, promoted as Orlando’s only “slotharium,” had not opened to the public at the time of the discoveries. An unannounced routine inspection by FWC officials at the warehouse in August 2025 uncovered the scale of the mortality event, prompting the formal investigation and subsequent report. Ben Agresta, the owner of Sloth World, disputed the FWC’s findings, stating that the sloths had succumbed to an undetectable virus with minimal symptoms, which he claimed was not identifiable even after necropsy. He characterized the report as containing “so much false and inaccurate information.” The FWC emphasized that the warehouse used to hold the animals was not permitted for wildlife housing, noting that such facilities require specific environmental controls to meet the physiological needs of sloths, which are highly sensitive to temperature fluctuations and stress. As of the report’s release, no official announcements have been made regarding the future of the Sloth World project or potential legal or regulatory actions stemming from the FWC’s findings. The incident has drawn attention from animal welfare organizations and prompted broader discussions about the oversight of exotic animal exhibits and importation practices in the state.
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