“Sixteen lions on a South African game reserve are facing death because of a shortage of funds to feed them, it emerged today.
The SanWild sanctuary, in Limpopo province, has issued an urgent appeal for donations to save the three prides of 14 adults and two cubs.
Officials have warned that if the sanctuary cannot meet the 45,000 rand (£4,000) monthly cost of meat to keep the lions healthy it will be forced to have them put down them ‑ possibly as soon as next month.
“The situation on the ground for our lions is dire and, unless we can urgently find sponsorship, the lions will have to be put down,” Louise Joubert, founder trustee of SanWild, said. “We find ourselves in a difficult situation. We can’t allow them to start starving. We would rather euthanise them than let them end up as a trophy on some hunter’s wall.”
The eight males and eight females have lived at the sanctuary, near Tzaneen, since 2003 and 2004 after being rescued from the canned hunting industry in which animals are usually bred in captivity to be hunted in a confined space.”
TO DONATE PLEASE GO TO:
SANWILD fundraiser on Indiegogo:
http://www.indiegogo.com/p/172936
SANWILD on FACEBOOK:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/SanWild-Wildlife-Sanctuary/163363760361196
