Ruben was in a private zoo in Armenia which closed, the other animals were removed but Ruben was left behind. His world went silent. For over five years Ruben’s roars have gone unanswered. He has now been moved to Armenia’s Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife & Cultural Assets bear sanctuary, where ADI is funding his care in a quarantine unit. He has just been microchipped, had the necessary vaccinations and blood tests required for international travel. Dr Harutyn Hovhannisyan is working with Dr Peter Caldwell to establish a regime to prepare him for his journey and provide any necessary pain relief.
Continue readinganimal rescue
Tomas: From Guatemala to Africa
Tomas was loaded into a travel crate in Guatemala and stepped out of it in Africa. Here’s what happened next. He must have been a bit disorientated following the long journey and we wonder what he thought as heard the sounds, smelt and saw the land of his ancestors? His life was about to transform.
Continue readingRuben’s first steps towards freedom
15-year-old Ruben, the lonely lion in Armenia, has been moved out of the zoo and into a temporary quarantine facility at in an Armenian sanctuary, so we can start the process of relocating him to the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary, South Africa. The first stage of his rescue is under way!
Read here: RUBEN HEALTH UPDATE (January 23, 2023)
Continue readingHelp give lonely lion Ruben a new life
Sweet lion Ruben has been alone for five years, in a private zoo which has closed. The other animals were relocated, but there was no room for him. At ten years old, he lost his whole family. He is close to an area in Armenia where there is an ongoing conflict, so before we can rescue him, we need to get him to a temporary place of safety.
Continue readingHAPPY THANKSGIVING!
Happy Thanksgiving from everyone at ADI, and a HUGE THANK YOU for everything that you have helped us achieve in the past year from awareness and education campaigns to securing new laws to rescuing and caring for animals. For Thanksgiving this week, the lions and tigers at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary have been enjoying special melon treats. This gallery gives a taste of the fun they have been having.
Continue readingSave the date to help an ADI rescue!
GivingTuesday, 29 November, is the world’s biggest day of generosity and ADI will be announcing our next rescue and a very special appeal! Details to be released on Friday 25th November. Pictured are Easy, David and Sasha tiger at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary and the life, which if we raise enough, that you can give another suffering animal.
Continue readingSANCTUARIES UNITED TO SAVE ANIMALS.
The ADI Wildlife Sanctuary team was pleased to help with the release of two tigers at the new Isindile Big Cat Sanctuary in South Africa. We donated two of our Guatemala travel crates to the new sanctuary.
Three weeks ago, the team from Isindile spent a day at ADIWS training with Johannes, Jan, and Lefaso covering food preparation, husbandry, feeding and safety protocols. The ADIWS team discussed the personalities of the lion and tiger residents at ADIWS and their different needs. We hope by helping another new sanctuary, we can contribute to the welfare of other rescued animals.
Continue readingFather of the pride
With Father’s Day on Sunday, we salute the Father of our ADI Wildlife Sanctuary Pride, 19-year old Leo.
We know that Leo and partner Muñeca are parents to at least five lions living at the sanctuary: Rolex, Coco, Chino, Africa and KiaraP. But it could be several more. Before they were rescued by ADI, Leo and Muñeca were owned by a circus in Peru, which was breeding and supplying almost every circus in the country. So, Leo could also be the daddy of Rey Cusco, KiaraC, Smith and Amazonas, and Grand Daddy to Mahla and Scarc – as some Peruvian officials believed.
Continue readingRey and Smith bask in the light
Two of the mightiest lions at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary bask in the light of another sunset in South Africa in their 6+ acre habitat. Smith is a huge, castrated male it’s a close call as to who is the biggest lion at the sanctuary between him and Kesari. It was campaigners with hidden cameras, leaflets and placards that transformed their lives.
Continue readingTwo years on: the Guatemala lions and tigers in Africa
Were you watching as the lions and tigers rescued from circuses in Guatemala crossed the globe, stopping in Mexico, Belgium and Qatar on their way to a new life at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary in South Africa? The flight of the 17 lions and tigers marked the end of a very tough 18-month enforcement operation of Guatemala’s ban on animal circuses. Fast forward two years, here they are now, at ADIWS this week.
Their lives changed under ADI care – from the day we removed them from the circus cages and put them in our Temporary Rescue Unit, they got to run and play on grass for the first time ever, and nobody can forget how the tigers splashed around in their first pools!
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ADI Wildlife Sanctuary 