Jeff Lowe Opens Up About Turning Over The Tiger King Zoo To Carole Baskin

Published on June 4, 2020.

It is safe to say that Jeff Lowe is not happy about having to turn over his zoo to Carole Baskin.

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Lowe said that he is going to make sure the park is a “complete hell” by the time Baskin takes over.

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“I mean, because I’m not taking care of it as we leave,” said Lowe, who was given 120 days to vacate the property, including all animals currently living there. “The bamboo is about taking this place over.”

In another incredible turn of events in the Tiger King saga so far, on Monday, June 1 it was revealed that Joe Exotic’s longtime nemesis, and the woman he allegedly tried to have killed, Carole Baskin had been awarded the park which of course is currently in the hands of Joe Exotic’s former partner also turned enemy Jeff Lowe.

Baskin was awarded the park as part of a trademark judgement against Joe Exotic which comes nearly seven years after Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, was ordered to pay Baskin $1 million for trademark infringement.

Lowe said that Basking “has no idea the amount of work it is to keep this park up.”

“We have anticipated this for almost two years. As soon as we came into the picture, Carol kind of automatically wrapped us under the same umbrella as Joe and tried to get me included in his judgement for a million dollars,” he said. “I think she expected I could pay it when Joe never could so she fought long and hard and wasted a lot of money to get me named in her lawsuit.”

He added that he is still trying to open a large animal park in Thackerville, Oklahoma.

“It’s always been our intention to leave this place,” Lowe said of the Wynnewood location. “We don’t particularly like it here, because of its geographical location. It’s not a great place for a business, it was poorly constructed, so we’re happy to let her have it… I wish her all the luck in the world, and she can have these 16 acres of haunted memories.”

“We don’t care about the TV show, we don’t care about Carole Baskin, we care that these animals finally get the life that they deserve,” he said of himself and wife Lauren, who joined him for the interview. “That’s why we’re anxious to get down to Thackerville.”