Neglected lions find SA home

2008-06-06 11:51

Bloemfontein - The big cat family at the Lionsrock Big Cat Sanctuary near Bethlehem in the Free State is set to grow on Friday as 10 lions and a tiger arrive from Romania, said spokesperson Fiona Miles.

The sanctuary spent the last couple of months preparing the enclosures for the new arrivals who cannot be rehabilitated into the wild, said Miles.

"They get to stay in a natural habitat created for them to enable a long and healthy life with the dignity they so richly deserve."

Miles said nine of the lions were cubs, born in 2007 in a run-down Romanian zoo in Braila, where all were in danger of death as the zoo was financially crippled and could not care for them.

She said in many cases such as these, where an uncontrolled birth programme existed, cubs were destined to be sold to photographers who would use them for tourism until they become too big.

"Thereafter they will be trapped in small cages or worse, killed," Miles said.

She said the cubs - which were rescued by animal welfare organisation, Four Paws - were in urgent need of attention due to lack of care leading to malnutrition and deformation.

Expected to arrive with the lion cubs was, Aline, an 11 month old female tiger.

Miles said the tiger was rescued by the Four Paws Romanian team when she was found badly injured shortly after birth.

"Her sibling was not so lucky.

"Aline was cared for and will now make a wonderful companion for Coda, the two-year-old male tiger already resident at Lionsrock."

The new arrivals would bring the big cat family at Lionsrock to 50.

Miles said the animals were expected to arrive in South Africa by Friday afternoon and had been cared for throughout the journey, via Frankfurt, by a Four Paws qualified international team.

- SAPA