He then opened a pet store with his brother, but after his brother's death in , Exotic sold the store and founded the G. During his tenure as director there, he also held magic shows and cub-petting events at venues across the U. In , Exotic ran as an independent in the presidential election , earning attention as a novelty candidate due to his eccentric persona and unconventional campaign style.
Exotic left the G. Zoo in June and was arrested three months later on suspicion of hiring two men to murder Big Cat Rescue founder Carole Baskin , with whom he had a complicated rivalry. The trial court reduced his sentence by 1 year, resentencing him to 21 years in late January Exotic has been subject to substantial criticism, especially for the controversies surrounding his feud with Baskin and the treatment of animals at the G.
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The success of the first season of Tiger King amid the worldwide COVID lockdowns led to Exotic receiving attention on social media and inspiring several internet memes. Carole aired on Peacock on March 3, A friend who worked at a drive-through safari park brought baby lions to his neighbor's home and let Exotic handle them.
Exotic credits these experiences with inspiring him to work with animals. Exotic returned to Texas and worked at various jobs before opening a pet shop with his brother "G. In , Exotic acquired his first two tigers, which had been abandoned. According to Exotic, he spoke by phone to Steve Irwin of Australia Zoo , whose vets provided advice on appropriate antibiotics for alligators and on treating an injured kangaroo.
In , after Irwin was killed by a stingray , Exotic dedicated a large indoor alligator complex inside the G. Zoo in his memory, naming it the Steve Irwin Memorial. In , seeking to earn money to feed his growing menagerie, Exotic partnered with a traveling magician to provide and handle tigers during stage illusions. The experience taught Exotic that traveling magic shows could be lucrative, and after parting with the magician, he began staging shows himself and adopted "Joe Exotic" as his stage name.
