Author: animaldefendersinternational

Kuwait rescue update

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The travel crates to bring the Kuwait lions home to the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary were delivered to Johannesburg Airport today (see Facebook live). Five lions. Saif (pictured), Dhubiya, Muheeb, Saham and Shujja, from Kuwait’s illegal pet trade are coming to the Sanctuary and we are trying to include the rescue of a sixth, who just arrived.

At the ADIWS, we re-purposed old crates, cutting them down, repainting and turning them into flat packed crates. On Sunday they were loaded onto a truck and at 5am this morning, headed to the airport. They will begin their journey to Kuwait on Wednesday, arriving at the weekend. The next time we see them in South Africa, they will have young lions inside.

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Ruben out and about

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Ruben, the lonely lion rescued from a private zoo in Armenia, has been enjoying the recent expansion of his habitat at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary, South Africa. Ruben arrived with severe difficulty walking due to spinal problems caused by poor diet and confinement. With veterinary treatment, supplements and physiotherapy thanks to his enthusiastic play with different toys such as catnip bags, Ruben’s mobility has improved significantly. There is still a long way to go, but at a January veterinary assessment, it was decided Ruben was ready for an additional half acre of more challenging space – with longer grass in places and slopes to climb to a platform. Recently, he has been using this more and more, sleeping under the platform and watching Max and Stripes (who have been captivated by seeing their neighbor up close).

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Meet Muheeb

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Muheeb is the oldest of the Kuwait5, a young 4-year-old male. A very handsome lion, we were told “His name means scary.” “Is he?” we asked. “He really isn’t,” said his carer, with a smile. He seems to have a very calm and gentle personality, and immediately came and sat beside Jan. We hope that at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary, we will not only be able to give him a wonderful huge habitat, but companionship of his own kind. He will be in a single habitat at first, but is very young, and hopefully, over time, we can get him together with another rescued lion.

Our thanks to the volunteers in Kuwait and staff at Kuwait zoo, who have ensured the animals are content and cared for, until we can relocate them to their new lives.

Click here to donate towards the relocation of the lions.

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Ruben awake after major dental surgery

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Ruben, the lonely lion who was rescued after being left alone in a closed private zoo in Armenia for five years after all the other animals were removed, today had dental surgery at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary, South Africa. Ruben arrived at ADIWS in late August with serious difficulty walking and numerous damaged teeth. He has made significant progress walking and veterinarian Dr Caldwell has been working towards building up Ruben’s health and strength ready for dental surgery.

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Vet day at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary

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Prof Steenkamp and Dr Peter Caldwell were at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary for dental work on several of the lions today and will be back tomorrow. Today Rolex, Simba and Scarc, rescued by ADI from different circuses in Peru, had dental surgery, and tomorrow Ruben will be having dental surgery and Kesari will have a dental examination. Simba, Rolex and Scarc are all back in their habitats and have recovered from their treatment and are moving about.

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How Kiara will be spending Mothering Sunday

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One of the great moments for ADI was reuniting Kiara with her cubs Mahla and Scarc after a circus in Peru tore the babies from their mother. Almost ten years later and Kiara will be spending the coming Mothering Sunday (10 March) with her family.

Mothering Sunday / Mother’s Day is marked in March in the UK, Ireland, Nigeria and most of the Middle East.

In honor of it, will you help support the care of Kiara and her beloved family so that they continue to enjoy many wonderful years together? Shop our collection of gifts for mum, which includes canvas prints of Kiara and her family, apparel, and bodycare.

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Working to bring the Kuwait 5 home

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Thank you to everyone who has been supporting and sharing our appeals. In Kuwait and South Africa, we are working as quickly as possible through the legal requirements and import processes to bring Muheeb, Saif, Dhubiya, Saham, and Shujaa to the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary.

The ADIWS team has re-purposed old travel crates from the Guatemala rescue. They are now flat-packed and can be re-assembled in Kuwait. Qatar Airways has again come to our aid with their WeQare scheme to move the lions free of charge – including a sixth lioness we are hoping we can add to the rescue. We are sending a travel crate for her just in case.

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Living a lion’s life

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Born in a tiny circus cage in Peru, we rescued Scarc and his family and brought him home to the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary, South Africa. Lions like Scarc cannot go into the wild but we can give them a life as close to what nature intended as possible. These animals need space to run and play, you can see that Scarc and his family have acres of space in Tohir Habitat at ADIWS.

We are working right now to bring five lions in Kuwait, that have been rescued from the illegal pet trade, to the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary. Help give them the life that Scarc has. Donate today