The founder of a zoo where nearly 500 animals died in less than three years from causes including emaciation and hypothermia is opening a horse-riding ranch in the Lake District.

Two years ago inspectors concluded that scores of animals had died in often cruel conditions at South Lakes Safari zoo in Cumbria between December 2013 and September 2016, when it was owned by David Gill.

The catalogue of deaths included two snow leopard cubs discovered partially eaten in their enclosure, and a squirrel monkey whose decomposing body was found behind a radiator. A diagnosis of chlamydia was reported in the zoo’s peacock population.

The inspectors recommended Gill should face prosecution under the Animal Welfare Act for allowing animals to suffer, and said the entire blame for the attraction’s problems could be laid at his door.

A month later Gill was refused a licence to continue running the zoo, and the attraction is now in the hands of new owners, Cumbria Zoo Company Ltd. Gill has never been prosecuted and denies any wrongdoing.

The Guardian has learned that Gill is now planning to launch an American-themed horse-riding ranch in the hills of the Lake District.

A planning application under the name David Rivera was submitted this month and looks likely to be approved by the Lake District National Park Authority, to the anger of animal rights campaigners.

In the first six months of 2016 alone at the zoo, five inca terns died from exposure, an alpaca died from hypothermia, a lemur drowned, a bird was euthanised after its beak was broken by a macaw, 13 other animals died from trauma and three died from starvation. A jaguar chewed off its own paw after damaging it on broken glass and exposed nails.

In June 2016, the zoo was fined £255,000 for health and safety breaches after the death of a keeper Sarah McClay, 24, who was mauled by a Sumatran tiger three years earlier.

Nicola O’Brien, of the charity Freedom for Animals, said of the ranch plans: “It is outrageous that any local authority would give David Gill the opportunity to run another business with animals.

“When he managed South Lakes Safari zoo, hundreds of animals died in just a few years. These animals died in a range of horrifying ways, from electrocution to starvation, all under his watch. How can he be entrusted to care for animals after such a track record? We are deeply concerned for any animals that end up in his care and urge the council to reject this application.”

Gill’s website promises a “western-style world heritage horse experience”, bringing “western comfort and style to the Lake District for you to enjoy”. He plans to offer horse-and-carriage rides for up to £400 a trip, and three-hour trail rides for £120.

The site refers to Gill’s previous ownership of a ranch in the US state of Wyoming but does not mention South Lakes Safari zoo, which he founded and ran for 24 years.

Contacted by the Guardian, Gill dismissed the 2017 inspection report, which found “significant problems” at South Lakes Safari zoo including overcrowding, poor hygiene and lack of animal husbandry.

Gill said the death rate at South Lakes Safari was “normal within any zoo” – a claim contested by campaigners who argue that his facility was much smaller than many others yet had a higher rate of deaths. The inspectors found that a total of 486 animals died in less than three years, many in cruel circumstances.

“There’s nothing for people to worry about,” Gill said. “The stories were not true in the first instance. If they had have been, why was I never, ever charged with anything or prosecuted for anything?

“I’ve always been emotionally attached to my animals. I’ve been working with them for years and years. Any concept that I would do anything to harm an animal or prevent it from getting proper treatment is ridiculous.”

Gill said he had started a new life since “all of that rubbish” in 2017 and had taken the surname of his wife, a Peruvian former beauty queen. “I’ve got through all that and got over it. I’ve lived a new life ever since and I’m actually very happy,” he said.

An informal inspection of Gill’s new venture by Copeland borough council found the ranch in “very good condition” and recommended the application be approved.

Gill has also provisionally applied for an animal activity licence, which would allow him to hire out horses. This has not yet been approved.