A Long Island man was cited by the United States Department of Agriculture for keeping a sloth and a wallaby in his in unsafe and unsatisfactory conditions in his East Rockaway home.
When USDA officials inspected Larry Wallach’s home, they found a sloth living in an enclosure in his garage surrounded by stacked items and bicycles hanging from the ceiling, according to the citation.
Officials noted the dangerous conditions of the sloth’s living conditions that could potentially injure the creature such as exposed wires.
Officials said the wallaby was improperly housed indoors in an enclosure that is just 39 inches high on one side, from which the jumping animal could easily escape.
Officers visited Wallach’s home in 2017 over reports of the Wallaby, which are illegal to keep as pets under Nassau County law. While the small marsupials — closely related to their Australian cousins the Kangaroo — appear cute and cuddly, they are known to be dangerous.
In May, the USDA cited Wallach after he posted a video on Facebook with a tiger cub that had been injured roughhousing with Wallach’s pet dog, fracturing its left foot.
An inspection by the agency also revealed sub-standard living conditions for the cub, who lived in a cage with rotting floorboard and could possibly escape the 8-foot fences in Wallach’s backyard.
“Handling of all animals shall be done in a manner that does not cause trauma, behavior stress or unnecessary discomfort,” the agency said.
PETA has repeatedly called for the USDA to revoke all of Wallach’s animal handling licenses.
“Wherever Larry Wallach goes, the potential for disaster follows,” PETA Foundation Associate Director of Captive Animal Law Enforcement Michelle Sinnott told Patch.
“PETA is calling on the public to stay away from Wallach and is urging the authorities to revoke his license before his recklessness gets someone hurt.”







