AUGUST 11 2022 – FOUR PAWS rescued seven lion siblings back in September of 2021 from unsafe and inappropriate private keeping in Romania. The global animal welfare organization brought the lions to FELIDA Big Cat Sanctuary in the Netherlands for immediate specialty care and treatments.

Now the five youngest lions have arrived at their forever home, LIONSROCK Big Cat Sanctuary in South Africa, on August 10^th, coincidentally World Lion Day.

Simba, Elza, Roman, Vincent, Dolf, Ellie, and Geena are all siblings from different litters: A result of uncontrolled breeding. They were rescued from Picior de Munte, a small village less than hundred kilometers from the Romanian capital Bucharest. Simba reached the news at the end of 2020 when he was used for pictures and a video clip by Romanian artist Dani Mocanu in Romania, which was shared on social media.

Romania banned the keeping of big cats and other wild animal species in circuses in 2017, and private keeping is only allowed with a special permit. In the EU and beyond, every year thousands of lions and other wild animals are exploited and abused for the commercial wildlife trade, for example for human entertainment.

During the rescue in Picior de Munte, FOUR PAWS encountered shocking neglect and abuse including a complete lack of professional and veterinary care. Unsafe keeping conditions also proved a danger not only for the animals but also for humans in case of an escape.  

Since then, the lions have received the specialized veterinary care they so desperately needed at FELIDA. The two older lions, Simba and Elza, will remain at the facility to maintain their focused care routine. Three-year-old Roman, Vincent, Dolf, Ellie and Geena have arrived safely at LIONSROCK Big Cat Sanctuary after a long journey. The sanctuary provides a species-appropriate, lifelong home for the mistreated big cats who cannot be released back into the wild.

“None of these lions had experienced a species-appropriate life in Romania, where they can live as a group according to their instincts and individual personalities in spacious, natural surroundings. At LIONSROCK they can explore, roam around and play but will also have place to hide, if they want. It is bittersweet that these five lions get this opportunity, but that their little brother is still stuck being kept as a pet and abused for videoclips,” says Barbara van Genne, responsible for Wild Animal Rescue and Advocacy at FOUR PAWS

LIONSROCK Big Cat Sanctuary near Bethlehem, South Africa is home to over 100 big cats, most of which were rescued by FOUR PAWS from war-ravaged zoos, circuses, private ownership, and the canned hunting industry. The habitat offers highest standards including large areas for family groups, facilitation of natural behavior through enrichment and highest standards of medical care as well as highest security standards of enclosures. In LIONSROCK hunting, trading or breeding, as well as interactions between wild animals and visitors, are prohibited.