Bloomberg promoting MGM's animal cruelty

In a rather bizarre photo Bloomberg added to MGM's Massachusetts' Folly, they chose to add a photo of the lion display that has since been closed.

MGM places sensible animal care at the bottom of its list. See articles below.

MGM Resorts Proposes $800 Million Massachusetts Casino-Hotel

By Rob Golum and Christopher Palmeri
Aug 22, 2012

David Paul Morris/Bloomberg

Tourists view a lion on top of a glass roof inside the MGM Resorts International casino in Las Vegas.

MGM Resorts International(MGM), the largest casino operator on the Las Vegas Strip, announced plans to develop an $800 million gambling, hotel and entertainment project in Springfield, Massachusetts.


The MGM Springfield project, if approved, would be located on about 10 acres of land that were heavily damaged by a June 2011 tornado, the Las Vegas-based company said today in a statement. The plans include restaurants, movie theaters and shopping.

MGM Resorts said it submitted a $400,000 fee that will fund the official vetting and negotiating process. The project would be located on three city blocks close to Interstate 91. The company said it controls several parcels in the area and has others under contract.

Massachusetts legislators legalized gambling last year, authorizing a maximum of three casinos in three regions. MGM will be competing for a license in the western part of the state. At least five other operators are eyeing locations there, including Ameristar Casinos Inc. (ASCA, Penn National Gaming Inc. (PENN), Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority and Seminole Hard Rock Entertainment Inc., according to an Aug. 20 analysis by the law firm Goodwin Procter LLP.

In March, MGM Resorts dropped out of a casino project in Brimfield, Massachusetts, citing the scope of infrastructure work needed in the area, and said it would seek an alternative location.


http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-08-22/mgm-resorts-proposes-800-million-massachusetts-casino-hotel-2-.html

Activists praise closure of MGM Grand's lion habitat

CORRECTION -- 12/31/11 -- A story and caption Friday’s Review-Journal about the lion habitat at the MGM Grand contained an error. Officials announced this week that they will be closing the free attraction Jan. 31. By Keith Rogers

LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL Posted: Dec. 29, 2011

Plans by MGM Grand to close its lion habitat at the Strip hotel received praise Thursday by a high-profile animal rights group that also criticized the lions' owner for wanting to put them on exhibit at his 7.5-acre ranch in the south Las Vegas Valley.

A letter from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals to Jim Murren, chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts International, thanks Murren and Chief Operating Officer Corey Sanders "for your decisions to close the lion exhibit ... and to offer our assistance in helping to relocate the lions to a reputable sanctuary."

Citing news reports, the letter said the lions' owner, Keith Evans, plans to put them on exhibit in Clark County.

"This plan is clearly not in the best interests of the animals. In their natural habitats, lions roam many miles of territory to hunt, raise their young, and avoid contact with people," according to the letter Thursday from Delcianna Winders, PETA's director of captive animal law enforcement.

The letter criticizes Evans for declawing lion cubs and for allowing trainers and handlers to have direct contact with the animals that led to two lion attacks at the MGM Grand.

Reached at his ranch southeast of the M Resort, Evans called PETA's letter "baloney" and wished PETA "good luck" in their efforts to put his 40 lions in a sanctuary.

Evans said that he has held his U.S. Department of Agriculture license for keeping lions for 40 years and that PETA has a "bad track record" in its endeavors to keep lions in sanctuaries.

Yvette Monet, corporate spokeswoman for MGM Resorts International, said the lions that Evans transports for display at the MGM Grand are owned by Evans, "and he is entirely responsible to their care."

Monet said the lions have always lived at Evans' ranch, and many of them were born there.
On Wednesday, MGM Grand announced that its lion habitat and retail shop will close Saturday . The habitat, a free attraction, opened in 1999 for $9 million.

In her letter, Winders said that MGM has maintained a $1 million fund for the care of lions at the habitat, "and we encourage you to use these funds to relocate the animals to a reputable sanctuary.

We stand ready to help coordinate such a transfer."

Reached by phone late Thursday in California, Winder said an ideal sanctuary for the lions would be one operated by the Performing Animal Welfare Society, an organization, based in Galt, Calif., for abused and abandoned wildlife.

Winder said she has never visited Evans' ranch but said the ranch doesn't have enough space to provide for lions in a natural habitat.

Evans has said he intends to make his ranch a public attraction called The Cat House. He said he has completed the zoning and permitting requirements that will allow him to host private parties and tour groups.

The exhibit also might be open to the walk-in public, but he is trying to work out logistics such as staffing.

  http://www.lvrj.com/news/animal-rights-group-praises-closure-of-mgm-s-lion-habitat-136407153.html

MGM Mirage in Vegas probing death of dolphin

July 7, 2008

MGM Mirage officials are investigating the death of a dolphin at an aquatic habitat at The Mirage (pictured above) on the Las Vegas Strip. The Associated Press reports:

Company spokesman Gordon Absher said Monday that animal care officials were still trying to determine why the dolphin, named Sage, died Saturday morning. 

The dolphin was born at the habitat in May 1997.

Correcting earlier reports, Absher says 13 dolphins have died at Siegfried & Roy's Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat since the attraction opened with five dolphins in 1990. He says that number included five that were stillborn or died shortly after birth.

The dolphin habitat offers tours to the paying public, birthday parties, “trainer for a day” and group tours in addition to being rented as a setting for private events.

--Francisco Vara-Orta
Photo: Jae C. Hong / Associated Press

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/unleashed/2008/07/mgm-mirage-in-v.html

By Dana Gentry

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

14 dolphins have died in the 19 years since Steve Wynn opened the Dolphin Habitat at the Mirage. Now, an animal rights group wants to stop the casino from bringing more dolphins to the desert.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/videos/2009/jun/17/2281/

Petitioned The Governor of NV

This petition was delivered to:

The Governor of NV	Mr. James MurrenChairman of the Board, Pres., CEO	Dave BlaskoDirector of Dolphin Habitat
Corey Ian SandersChief Operations Officer	Dave BlaskoDirector of Dolphin Habitat/Mirage	Daniel D'ArrigoChief Finanacial Officer

No More Dolphins Swimming in Las Vegas

byBarbara Napoles

This petition was started in response to an article I recently became aware of regarding the exhibit “Siegfried and Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat” located at the Mirage hotel and owned by MGM Grand International.

Born Free USA and the WSPA have condemned this place for its claims of being a research and educational facility, while in reality it is motivated by profits. They have nicknamed it the “Dolphin Death Pool” and below you will find some information pertaining to this name.

A recent visitor of the exhibit stated that upon entering the facility, with admission price of $15, you are given a brochure which talks about conservation and gives you wild dolphin facts. However, advertisements on TV and magazines push their “be trainer for a day” programs to attract visitors.

Upon looking at the website we found that the trainer for a day program cost are as follows: Trainer for a day $495. Trainer with one observer $645 and Trainer with 2 observers is $795.00

Although this exhibit says it’s a research and educational facility and has “no scheduled shows”. The dolphins perform tricks (flips, jumps, tailwalking, beaching themselves on the platform) for the paying customers and are given fish to feed as reward. We’d like to point out that these are not natural behaviors for dolphins; it is a trained and taught behavior so that the dolphins could entertain.

This exhibit has been the death sentence for many wild and captive-born dolphins. The Review-Journal obtained records from the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration that includes an inventory of the dolphins at The Mirage and cause of death for those that died.

Here is a list of the dolphins that have died there since its opening in 1990:

* Rascal – age 4 – Death unknown
 * Pablo – age 10 – Died from rare fungus in its lungs
 * Darla – age 18 – Died from chronic pancreatitis
 * Squirt – age 15 – Died from respiratory ailment
 * Picabo – age 18 – Died suddenly from internal tear in its stomach
 * Bugsy – age 3 – Died from pulmonary abscess
 * No name – Stillborn
 * No name – 2 week old calf – died from pulmonary edema
 * Sigma – age 32 – Died from heart failure
 * Banjo – age 32 – Died from heart failure
 * Merlin – age 40 (estimate) – died from pneumonia
 * Sage – age 11 – death unknown
 * St. Pepper – age 2 – lung infection
 http://www.facebook.com/l/46befe8wGBe8qnQg310CxoHbDLA;www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2007/Feb-18-Sun-2007/news/12653710.html

The attraction states that they take excellent care of their dolphins, however it seems to us that the mortality rate of these animals is very high. We believe that these bottlenose dolphins are subject to extreme temperature changes, from extreme cold (snow flurries) to extreme arid, dry conditions and pollution from a nearby highway. The pool is located in the heart of Las Vegas and specifically next to a busy highway. If you lived next to constant gas fumes from thousands of automobiles, you’d develop respiratory problems too!

Also, we have found that in 2009 the Mirage had asked the National Marine Fisheries Services (NMFS) to import two dolphins from Bermudas for breeding. It seems logical to think that those dolphins would have been bred to keep the tank stocked with dolphins.

This petition proposes its readers to urge the Mirage to prepare a plan to relocate the dolphins to a facility that mimics the dolphins natural environment. These creatures belong in the ocean, not in middle of the desert. If they are truly a research and educational facility they would not need to be located in the Las Vegas strip.

We understand that dolphins who are born in captivity will not be able to be released in the ocean. However, we believe that the era of marine mammal captivity for human entertainment is over. We are no longer amused with dolphins performing unnatural behaviors.

Please consider relocating the dolphins to a facility closer to the their natural environment.

For the Dolphins, For the Whales, For the World!

If you have a problem signing the Petition email directly to: secretgarden@mirage.com
 Thank you all for your support!

http://www.lasvegassun.com/videos/2009/jun/17/2281/

http://www.change.org/petitions/no-more-dolphins-swimming-in-las-vegas