Music

Justin Bieber is hosting a $300-per-ticket event at disgraced Bowmanville Zoo

by Richard Howard

To say Justin Bieber doesn’t have the best record when it comes to interaction with animals is a little of an understatement.

After abandoning a monkey in Germany, he showed off white lion cubs at a concert (which earned him a notice of violation from Toronto Animal Services) and Instagrammed a photo of himself stroking a tethered Bengal tiger at his father’s engagement party.

Making things worse was the fact that the tiger turned out to be from the Bowmanville Zoo, which had been charged with sub-standard care, and even abuse, by animal activists. In the wake of these accusations and owner Michael Hackenberger being criminally charged with animal cruelty, the zoo recently announced it will be closing its doors in October.

You’d think (regardless of the veracity of the accusations) Bieber wouldn’t touch the Bowmanville Zoological Park (BZP) with a ten-foot pole, right? Well, my friend, you don’t know Biebs. BZP recently announced that a final blowout event will take place at the zoo this Sunday. Titled “Bieber Family Fun Day” or – wait for it – “BFF Day,” the event will be hosted by the entire Bieber clan who, according to the zoo, “have met some of our amazing animals over the past few months.”

So what are we looking at for tickets – sixty, seventy bucks? Nah. To get in, each attending member of your family is going to need to shell out $295. And we do mean each member. According to DurhamRegion.com, all attendees, including young children and babies-in-arms require a full-priced ticket.

The zoo has said the proceeds from the event will go to the care of the animals during the upcoming rehoming process, which is, of course, a cause we can all get behind. All the while, supporters of the zoo insist that Hackenberger’s personal missteps have given a park staffed by otherwise caring individuals a bad rap.

Whatever the case may be, Biebs would be wise to keep two things in mind: One, please don’t let it come out that you’ve charged an exorbitant appearance fee, taking away from the money raised for the animals. And two – don’t pet any tigers.