Close up of Lion Diego

FOUR PAWS Rescues Traumatised Lion From Slovakia

After years of inappropriate keeping, lion Diego will find a new home in the Netherlands at FELIDA Big Cat Sanctuary

7.11.2024

Nijeberkoop/Vienna, 7 November 2024 – Global animal welfare organisation FOUR PAWS has rescued an eight-year-old lion named Diego from inappropriate keeping in a Slovakian big cat facility. On 6 November, the male lion arrived safely at FELIDA Big Cat Sanctuary in the northern Netherlands, which is run by FOUR PAWS and specialises in the care of traumatised big cats. Diego shows clear signs of a traumatic past and will now get the chance to recover. His story is exemplary of the many big cats suffering in private keeping in the EU and beyond, where their complex needs cannot be fulfilled. FOUR PAWS urges governments to ban the ruthless trade and keeping of big cats, as their keeping, breeding and trade is still not regulated in many European countries and worldwide.

“Diego is exhibiting great fear of humans, particularly of men. When we first visited him in Slovakia, he wouldn’t let anyone get near his enclosure and was charging at the fence. This is a clear defense mechanism and could even be a response to possible violence and abuse he might have endured,” explains Patricia Tiplea, Head of Wild Animal Rescue & Advocacy at FOUR PAWS.

Lion Diego was born in 2016 in Czechia, where his first owner wanted to sell him to be hunted and killed for sport. An animal activist privately acquired Diego to save him from the cruel fate of ending up as a trophy on a wall. Due to a lack of other options, she took him to a private tiger facility near Bratislava in 2018, where he was kept alone in a small enclosure without any means to live out natural behaviours. The facility is not appropriate for keeping big cats and has no professionally trained staff.

“When we first learned of Diego, we knew we had to take him to a species-appropriate home. He was showing stereotypical behaviour, pacing up and down his small, dirty enclosure. At FELIDA we will provide a better future for him. Shortly after his arrival, Diego already started to settle in well and has accepted food from his new care takers. It will take time to get over the traumas of his past and to build up trust, but we are already seeing progress,”

Juno van Zon, Head of Animal and Facility Management at FELIDA Big Cat Sanctuary.

As lions live in prides in the wild and benefit from living with a conspecific in captivity, the specialised staff at FELIDA will try to socialise lion Diego with a resident lioness.

Tips to end the suffering of big cats in captivity

Globally, the big cat trade is out of control due to a lack of regulations and enforcement. Unlike in Slovakia, where the breeding, keeping and trading of big cats is already prohibited, these are still legal in many countries. The facility where Diego was kept is only allowed to operate on the grounds of a grandfather clause.

To help stop the big cat trade, FOUR PAWS asks individuals to:

  • Boycott facilities that offer selfies, petting, walking opportunities or other interactions with tiger or lion cubs, as this fuels the big cat trade. Find out more: Wild Animals in Zoos
  • Report to FOUR PAWS if you see or hear of any exploitation of big cats on our reporting tool.

 

FELIDA Big Cat Sanctuary in the Netherlands is one of 13 wild animal sanctuaries and cooperation projects FOUR PAWS has established worldwide for rescued wild animals. It functions as a special care facility for physically and mentally traumatised big cats. The big cats that recover from the hardships of their past can be transferred to LIONSROCK Big Cat Sanctuary in South Africa. Animals that need lifelong intensive and special care stay at FELIDA. Four rescued lions are currently living at the sanctuary.

Close up of Lion Diego

#BreaktheViciousCycle


Learn about our campaign to ban the commercial trade of big cats in South Africa

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Vera Mair PR International Officer

Vera Mair 

(she/her)
PR International Officer 

vera.mair@four-paws.org

+43 (0) 664 409 05 16

VIER PFOTEN International 
Linke Wienzeile 236
1150 Vienna, Austria

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FOUR PAWS is the global animal welfare organisation for animals under direct human influence, which reveals suffering, rescues animals in need and protects them. Founded in 1988 in Vienna by Heli Dungler and friends, the organisation advocates for a world where humans treat animals with respect, empathy and understanding. The sustainable campaigns and projects of FOUR PAWS focus on companion animals including stray dogs and cats, farm animals and wild animals – such as bears, big cats and orangutans – kept in inappropriate conditions as well as in disaster and conflict zones. With offices in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Kosovo, the Netherlands, Switzerland, South Africa, Thailand, Ukraine, the UK, the USA and Vietnam as well as sanctuaries for rescued animals in eleven countries, FOUR PAWS provides rapid help and long-term solutions. www.four-paws.org

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