Beauvoir animals headed for greener pastures

BILOXI -- A popular attraction at Beauvoir will soon be a thing of the past.

About 60 animals -- peacocks, goats and more-exotic species such as a miniature zebu -- will soon be leaving their beachfront home.

Beauvoir Executive Director Greg Stewart said he plans to have all the animals moved by Friday to a church that has agreed to take them.

The removal of the animals stems from a decision made Tuesday by its board of directors.

The motion, which Stewart said passed 6-2, calls for the removal of all goats and large animals and the containment of the remaining animals.

"I would rather just remove the animals instead of putting them in pens," Stewart said. "At least if I remove them, I know they will be kept safe. This is for their safety because I love animals."

The motion claims the animals have been a "contentious issue" since their arrival last year, citing waste problems and some aggressive behavior by a camel and goats butting a car door.

"Those allegations are not true," Stewart said. "We've had some issues here and there, but they're animals and that's what you have insurance for. I'm not going to shut down the house just because it could catch on fire. It's the same thing."

Stewart, who has been Beauvoir's executive director since March 2014, said he brought the animals to the 52-acre property last year in hopes of generating more revenue.

"The addition of the animals definitely was a big draw," he said. "People loved taking selfies with the animals and posting them on social media."

He estimated it cost about $3,000 a month to feed and care for the animals.

The property is fenced, Stewart said, so the animals wander at will except for one off-limits area.

"Some of the animals were getting into the cemetery, but I built a fence so they can't get in there anymore."

From the initial set of peacocks, Stewart's collection grew into something of a mini-zoo, with goats, sheep, chickens, turkeys, horses, llamas and a pig.

He said a special guest arrived last Christmas.

"We wanted to do a live Nativity scene last year," he said. "We wanted to buy a camel, but the camel we wanted was about $12,000. But someone needed a place for a camel, and we were able to get one."

Stanley the camel had to leave the property, but he was soon replaced by Sir Camelot, a young camel owned by Beauvoir.

Stewart said he hates to see the animals leave.

"This was a good attraction for us, and it was good for marketing," he said. "I've become attached to a lot of these animals. My daughter fell in love with one of the baby goats that was born on the property."

This story was originally published December 16, 2015 at 7:20 PM with the headline "Beauvoir animals headed for greener pastures ."