Give Four Former Circus Lions A Sanctuary Home

With the help of GlobalGiving donors, four rescued lions – who used to perform in the circus big top – are now enjoying a peaceful and enriched life at Born Free’s big cat sanctuary in South Africa.

Spring has arrived in the southern hemisphere and the rescued big cats and Born Free team are enjoying warmer days in Shamwari Private Game Reserve, in South Africa. There are flowers all around the sanctuary and birds are singing every day, everything looks beautiful!

With your help, since their arrival last February, the ‘Lions of Lockdown’ have settled well and are clearly enjoying their new home. This can be seen in their behaviour – they roar loudly to declare their presence to the world, while the trees in their large natural enclosure are covered in their claw marks, where they have marked their territory and sharpened their claws. That is natural behaviour, often seen in lions in the wild – a good indicator that the Lions of Lockdown are content and that life is good!

It is lovely to watch the lioness Saida showing affection for the only male lion Louga. They rub heads and she will cuddle up close to him, sometimes even sitting on him – which he doesn’t seem to mind! Bellone and Angela are also very companionable, though Angela can be quite dominant and sometimes growls – but she is mostly very caring and often displays a lot of affection towards the others. It is wonderful to watch her being gentle with Louga, Bellone and Saida. Of the four, Bellone is the quiet one and can be more reserved, but she is also very friendly with her fellow lions and will happily share her food with them.

Knowing what they have been through – years of noise and bright lights in the circus ring – it is fantastic to now give them the best care possible, amongst the natural fauna and flora in their spacious enclosure. Most importantly, with your support, they don’t have to perform tricks for anyone, ever again.