Owner: Group Of Teens Trespass At N.J. Farm And Petting Zoo, Abuse Animals
WYCKOFF, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- The owners of a popular New Jersey farm and petting zoo are outraged after catching teenagers trespassing and allegedly abusing its animals.
But the group managed to get away, CBS2's Jenna DeAngelis reported Sunday.
From its farm market to its greenhouse and petting zoo, Abma's Farm has been part of the Wyckoff landscape for more than eight decades.
"I'm a fourth generation farmer here at Abma's Farm," Jimmy Abma said.
It means the world to Jimmy Abma and his family, who were disrupted Saturday night by a group of trespassing teens.
"It's just frustrating because even though this is a petting zoo and we open to the public, this is still our home. We still have three generations of our four-generation farm living here on this property," Jimmy said.
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At around 10:30 p.m., Abma received a picture of a young girl riding a miniature donkey. He immediately recognized the animal, which he told DeAngelis should not be supporting that kind of weight, adding he couldn't miss the farm name tagged in the Snapchat post.
"Obviously, we're closed, so that raised a concern to me right off the bat, that there's people trespassing, the animals are somewhat in danger and I just need to figure out what's going on," Jimmy said.
As he went outside yelling, he said a group of teenagers started bolting. He found petting zoo gates open and among the frightened animals, a miniature pony with lipstick on its face.
"Couple of the animals you couldn't even get close to. They were all skittish. They were all jumping around. We did a full count on the animals and we're still trying to account for all of them so it's just a frustrating thing," Jimmy said. "These animals, they have the ability to kick and rear up and they have the ability to bite you."
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Abma also said he caught two people attempting to steal items at the market, but they ran off as he called Wyckoff police.
"Whatever these kids did they need to be held responsible for it," Jimmy said. "At the end of the day, this is our house, this is our yard, this is our livelihood."
The barnyard is normally open on Mondays, but will be closed for the day so a veterinarian can do a full health and wellness check on all the animals.
Sources told CBS2 police know who they are looking for. It's not clear if any arrests have been made.
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