Four lion cubs kept as pets in squalid conditions have been freed to live their lives in an African sanctuary – thanks to the efforts of British wildlife campaigners.
Horus, Dadou, Thea and Cersei are believed to have been taken from their mothers before they were weaned as part of the exotic wildlife trade.
The Born Free Foundation said they were kept in “completely inadequate conditions” in France.
The four, now known as the Lions of Lyon, were just a few months old when they were rescued by French wildlife charity, Fondation 30 Million d’Amis.
Dadou was found on Paris’s most famous street – the Champs-Elysees – in the back of a Lamborghini missing the tip of his tail after his owner was caught by police officers taking photos with the cub.
Horus, the largest of the four cubs, was found on a child’s bed in an apartment on the outskirts of Paris while his owner was hiding in his neighbour’s cupboard.
Police were alerted after images of the cub had been posted on Snapchat.
Cersei was found on the same day as Horus in a garage in Marseille and was suffering from a catalogue of illnesses.
As well as being very underweight, she also had skin irritation, a dull coat, gastrointestinal problems and corneal ulcers.
Thea, the smallest and youngest of the cubs, was surrendered by her owner.
She had glaucoma, and was under-developed and underweight, with extreme hair loss and diarrhoea.
But thankfully all are now on the road to recovery and have been released at Born Free’s big cat sanctuary Shamwari Private Game Reserve in the Eastern Cape of South Africa – starting their new lives in their ancestral home of Africa.
Born Free’s Dr Chris Draper added: “The tragic stories of these cubs are a result of the appalling demand for wild animals as ‘pets’ and in circuses.
“These four cubs face a happier future in our care, but we must also work to stamp out the trade in wild animals as pets and bring to an end the use of wild animals in circuses once and for all.”
- To help stamp out the trade and to support the lifetime care of the lions of Lyon, go to bornfree.org.uk.
