Situated on , the Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park began as a shelter for endangered and exotic species of animals, and was home to over fifty species of animals and 200
big cats, such as
tigers,
lions,
pumas,
ligers and
tigons. It was originally established as the
Garold Wayne Exotic Animal Memorial Park in 1999 by
Joe Exotic and dedicated to the memory of his brother, Garold Wayne Schreibvogel, who had died in a car crash in 1997. The park was known by multiple names over the years, including the
G.W. Exotic Animal Memorial Foundation and the
Garold Wayne Interactive Zoological Foundation. In 2010, G.W. Exotic Animal Memorial Foundation created Big Cat Rescue Entertainment Group, Inc.
Big Cat Rescue Corp., an
animal sanctuary based in
Tampa,
Florida, filed suit against them, claiming the name and logo similarities were used to damage their reputation and cause confusion; the Tampa sanctuary's founder,
Carole Baskin, had previously been a critic of the practices at Joe Exotic's park. The defendants counter-claimed, stating that Big Cat Rescue had caused them financial loss. In February 2013, a judge rejected the counter-claim and Exotic agreed to a
consent decree of approximately . The park filed for bankruptcy and remained open to the public. In 2011, the park was issued a
rendering facility license by the
State of Oklahoma. In 2016, Jeff Lowe purchased the park from Exotic, but left him in charge of daily operations. Lowe increased the zoo's menagerie from 29 animals in 2017 to 212 in 2020,
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) records show; the zoo then had
bears,
lemurs and
monkeys in addition to exotic cats. In May 2020, federal judge
Scott Palk of the
Western District Court of Oklahoma gave ownership of the park to Baskin after ruling that Exotic
fraudulently transferred ownership to his mother to avoid paying debts incurred as a result of Baskin's suit. The judge ordered Lowe to vacate the park within 120 days and remove all animals. After Lowe's departure, Baskin decided to sell the property with
deed restrictions prohibiting the keeping of exotic animals. Baskin found the park to be heavily vandalized with rotting meat and graffiti referencing the
disappearance of Don Lewis; Lowe denied responsibility for the damage. Lowe relocated the animals to the Thackerville property, intending to open a new park there, but the
U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit citing Lowe's history of poor animal care; the park never opened and federal authorities seized all 68 cats in May 2021. As of early 2026, most aspects of the park, including its entry sign and any reference to exotic animals, have been removed, with additional fencing and a security presence in place to deter vandals and trespassers. A trailer park currently sits on the site. ==Controversies==