JACKSON – A U.S. Department of Agriculture inspection found no violations at Six Flags Great Adventure, according to a report the park provided following concerns about its elephant habitat.
The October 9, 2026, report from the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service identifies the visit as a focused inspection.
“No non-compliant items identified during this focused inspection,” the report states. It also notes that the inspection and exit briefing were conducted with facility representatives.
Six Flags provided the document in response to Jersey Shore Online’s story about a complaint from World Animal Protection US. The park said the agency’s review had concluded without findings of noncompliance and requested an update reflecting that outcome.
World Animal Protection’s complaint questioned whether five African elephants had sufficient outdoor shade. Based on aerial imagery, the organization alleged the enclosure lacked adequate protection from direct sunlight and asked federal officials to investigate.
Six Flags disputed those allegations. Ryan Eldredge, the park’s director of sales and marketing, previously said the elephants receive veterinary attention, enrichment and daily care, with access to indoor and outdoor spaces.
The inspection report documents no noncompliant items during the focused visit. It does not describe the specific areas examined or separately discuss the shade allegations.
Liz Cabrera Holtz, Senior Programs Manager, World Animal Protection, US states “World Animal Protection stands firmly by our position that Joyce and the other elephants at Six Flags are being denied adequate shade as required by law. Unfortunately, the Animal Welfare Act sets an alarmingly low bar for animal welfare, and even those minimal standards are chronically underenforced.
But this issue goes far beyond whether Six Flags meets the bare minimum required by law. Meeting minimum legal standards does not mean an animal is thriving—or even that their most basic needs are being met.
Joyce and the other elephants are suffering. No amusement park can come close to providing the vast space, complex social environments, and opportunities for natural behavior that elephants need to thrive. The question isn’t whether Six Flags is doing just enough to comply with the law. It’s why these elephants are still being forced to live in an amusement park at all.
We once again call on Six Flags to do the right thing: Release Joyce and the other elephants to a sanctuary where their needs, not entertainment or profit, come first.”
World Animal Protection has called for the elephants’ relocation to a sanctuary and announced an October 24 demonstration. The event, called “Protest for Joyce,” was scheduled for noon to 1 p.m. at Adventure Crossing, 515 Monmouth Road.
