Former zookeeper: Animals beaten to death

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STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Oct. 16 (UPI) -- Another employee has come forward to allege mistreatment of animals at a Swedish zoo.

Caroline Ryding told The Local.se she left her job at the Oland Animal Park last year after she saw regular abuse of animals. She charged that animals were killed to avoid the cost of feeding them.

"A goat and a coati were beaten to death with a baseball bat. They had no room for them and couldn't afford a vet," she said. "The owners told us not to say anything because what they did was illegal."

The County Administration Board has found no problems at the park in several inspections, the newspaper Smalandsnytt reported. Other employees have made public complaints of animal mistreatment, with some telling Sveriges Radio a delay in calling a veterinarian led to the death of an ape that suffered a miscarriage.

The animal park, which houses about 100 species, is on the island of Oland in the Baltic off Sweden's southeast coast.