Animal Lovers and King of Pop

Posted on August 1, 2009

Despite being plagued by debt, child abuse accusations, and a constant “public eye”, Michael Jackson stunned the world by passing away and reminded us all how much we really appreciate all that he has done for the world. However, after the death of legendary Michael Jackson on June 25th many were left wondering about his debt. Some of us are wondering about the fate of his children, Prince Michael, Paris Michael Katherine, and Prince Michael II. But as veterinarians, we became curious as to the fate of his animals. As you might recall, Michael had a zoo at his Neverland Ranch. So what will happen to Bubbles the chimp? After a little bit of digging on the internet we found what we were looking for.

It turns out Bubbles, whom at the age of 3 was “rescued” from a cancer research center in Texas, had been separated from Michael for approximately 4 years now. Reports indicate that Bubbles became too aggressive as he grew older and Michael was forced to give him up. Bubbles has been living in Florida at the Center for Great Apes and is doing great according to recent articles that have been sprouting throughout the web as a result of a curiosity for his fate now that Michael has passed.

As for all the other animals, with his ongoing financial troubles and the near loss of the Neverland Ranch in 2006, Michael had to eliminate his private zoo. The Voices of the Wild Foundation had acquired some of Jackson’s zoo animals back in 2007. Other animals such as his caiman and anacondas are in a private reserve in Oklahoma. Thriller and Sabu, tigers of Jackson, have been living in a wildlife preserve in California. Thankfully, it seems that all of Jackson’s animal friends had found a home a few years prior to his death as a result of his financial woes. One thing that seems certain is that Michael loved his animals very much and did his best to ensure they were well taken care of while at the Neverland Ranch.