Moon, one of 15 tigers we rescued from a circus in Guatemala, marks the beginning of Spring in South Africa with a dip in the pool. She was a small cub when we rescued her and is now a magnificent tigress living with her sisters Luna, Jade and Sun at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary.
tigers
Lupe needs your love
Ex-circus tiger from Guatemala, Lupe, is now suffering the same damage because of her circus life, like her sisters Bimbi and Sombra. She is now having the same seizures we saw in her sisters and was taken to hospital for an MRI so that Dr Caldwell and his colleagues could establish the extent of the lesions on her brain and decide the next course of medication to hold off and minimise the seizures. This condition cannot be cured, but we can treat her to make her comfortable and give her as long as we can to enjoy the freedom of her habitat alongside her family. She is now back home at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary following her scan.
Continue readingCatnip time!
Big or small, all cats go crazy for it. Huge thanks to Kunduchi Pet Products, a company based in South Africa, for donating 10kg of catnip to provide our rescued lions and tigers fun enrichment. Enrichment and play are essential for keeping rescued animals physically and mentally healthy. Enjoy these photos of our ADI Wildlife Sanctuary residents enjoying catnip stuffed into boxes with teff. Which photo is your favorite?
If you’d like to donate towards more catnip and other enrichment for our big cats to enjoy, click here.
Playful Spice
Precious Jade has one thing on her mind as she strides across the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary’s Tiger Territory: FUN! Jade has proven to be the especially playful one of the boisterous ‘Spice Girls’, a group of tigresses rescued by ADI from a Guatemalan circus, including sister Luna and sisters from another litter Sun and Moon. Jade loves to chase and be chased, and right now she’s ready to wind down and relax in the pool.
Continue readingMagnificent Max and Stripes
You remember those tiny cubs ADI rescued from a circus holed up in a junkyard in Guatemala? Well, they grew up to be really, really BIG. With good food, care and nutritional supplements, all the cubs we rescued in Guatemala – Max, Stripes, Sun and Moon – have outgrown the rest of their family, who endured lifelong malnutrition in the circus. The boys were once the shyest of the animals at the ADIWS but have steadily become increasingly friendly and inquisitive.
Born to be wild
For animals like Sasha, rescued from a circus in Guatemala and now at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary, it is sadly not possible to return them to the wild. But we can try to do the next best thing. She has the space to roam – the 2.5-acre Stephi Habitat – and a natural habitat she can blend into and disappear from view. Seeing Sasha leaping over one of the natural pools in her habitat or suddenly springing into the air to try and catch a bird are spectacular sights. It’s a long way from that bare circus cage in Guatemala, this is her piece of ‘wild’.
Continue readingSasha’s freedom of choice
Rescued tigers like Sasha cannot be returned to the wild, but we can give them choices and a natural and interesting environment at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary, South Africa. Before ADI rescued her from a circus in Guatemala, she was confined to a tiny bare cage, with nowhere to hide – always exposed from all four sides. Now Sasha can choose whether to disappear into her habitat, perhaps only to be seen leaping into the air to try to catch a bird. She will often wander over to neighbours Max and Stripes or lounge in one of her pools – she has two we have built and one natural pool, but often she will still choose to lie in a water trough. She might play with one of her toys like her giant ball, or might wander over to check out a passing human. Then, if you’re lucky, she’ll walk alongside you for a while. Here’s the important thing, it’s when she chooses.
Phase 1 of our roads project complete
The summer rains this year left our dirt roads between our lion and tiger habitats damaged, churned up, and often impassable. Our habitats cover over 60 acres and are connected by almost two miles of dirt roads which are used several times a day to deliver food, medications and enrichment for the animals, for cleaning and maintenance, and security/welfare checks. Good roads are essential to the welfare of our residents and for any emergencies like fighting wildfires and getting a resident to the hospital if needed.
Continue readingYou’re keeping them warm
Last month, ADI supporters on Facebook raised the money for all of the hay bales to insulate the dens of the lions and tigers at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary in South Africa this winter. You even surpassed our target, raising enough for the soft teff bedding inside the dens throughout the winter too! THANK YOU!
Continue readingLeaping for life!
Max and Stripes play together after being given a catnip and hay filled box at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary, South Africa.
Rescued by ADI from a tiny cage circus in Guatemala (which they shared with four other tigers), you can see just how much space these powerful wild animals need to exercise and express themselves.
In the background you can see their lake in the 5+ acre Kakato Habitat. Rescued as six month old cubs, the boys have their entire lives ahead of them, will you adopt them to secure their lifetime care?
ADI Wildlife Sanctuary 