OM family mauled by Tigers.

Rhona · May 05, 2008, 07:59:30 AM

For sure Carl - if the animals are not going to be cared for then they shouln't be captured in the first place

Michael Alexander · May 05, 2008, 08:13:05 AM

And Here is a close up of the poor condition of one of the Lions at Tygerberg Zoo..... Sad.... really Sad....

Rhona · May 05, 2008, 08:17:19 AM

OMG - The poor little thing; just makes you want to grab a huge wire cutters and cut them all free; course if they're all half starved to death then you better be able to run fast before you free them........

Carl Wrbka · May 05, 2008, 09:41:21 AM

Hey Michael, how about sending some of these pics to the SPCA? nspca@nspca.co.za
I believe they still have some say in SA regarding the welfare of Zoo animals. Alternately there's always Carte Blanche. They would love a story like this. Especially now that the world's attention is focused on SA for the 2010 World Cup.

Rhona · May 05, 2008, 02:46:34 PM

Good plan 99 - let's draw attention to this atrocity

Lance Olivier · June 04, 2008, 08:02:53 PM

Hi All
Seeing images and reading stories like this really P***** me off like no end. Remember who put those animals in their present situation; us human beings who are supposed to be of superior intelligence. Ligers, Tions, Zonkeys where is the crap going to end. Interbreeding to create an animal? I personally cannot condone that kind of "SCIENCE". Let nature take it's course, I cannot understand why "man" must interfere. Who are humans to think that they have jurisdiction over an animals natural migratory paths, feeding grounds, put them in zoos/parks etc. Remember us humans have stripped away a lot of their natural hunting grounds by means of farms, towns, cities, etc. I do believe in helping an animal in distress and will always do so, but in the natural world nature must be allowed to take it's course without interferance. I must end now as I'm getting too emotional.
bye

Michael Alexander · June 05, 2008, 09:12:19 AM

Thanks Carl, letter and photo posted....

Carl Wrbka · June 05, 2008, 07:17:33 PM

Cool. Keep us posted on any developments.

wayne wilson · August 20, 2008, 10:49:38 AM

HI GUYS ,WILL SEND PICS OF MY BABIES TO THE SITE AS SOON AS I CAN.IVE GOT 4 WHITE LIONS,6 MONTHS OLD,AND ONE LITTLE BABY WHITE AT 6 WEEKS OLD.
REGARDS WAYNE,

DUNJA WRBKA · August 20, 2008, 02:09:11 PM

May I ask what the purpose is for having these lions?

wayne wilson · August 20, 2008, 02:31:29 PM

Hi, Yes you may,they are at the game park where im working at the moment,I have been ask to teach them how to hunt for themselves,they were confiscated from a dealer who was going to use them for canned hunting.I go out with them and track game and they then chase after the game and catch it for themselves,so when they get released into the wild again they will see live game as food and not rely on humans to feed them.thats it in a nut shell,regards WAYNE.

Paula Gottsch (Willson) · August 20, 2008, 02:37:55 PM

glad to hear you are out there looking after there best intrest Wayne, I like them better in the wild then in a cage.

Bertie Horak · August 20, 2008, 02:42:57 PM

@ Wayne - Great job! Glad to hear there's people who are helping them to be the hunter, rather than being the hunted!

sigmund storm · August 20, 2008, 03:07:19 PM

Quote from: Carl Wrbka on May 05, 2008, 06:32:25 AM
It's unfortunately a sign of the times we live in Rhona. Corruption in government always hits the hardest in areas that lay close to our hearts, the welfare of children and animals. The conditions described by Michael are sadly here to stay, in all our State funded Zoo's.

Just maybe a bit more info on Tygerberg Zoo. When we left OM in 1976, we moved to a smalholding in Joostenbergvlakte, which is where Tygerberg Zoo is situated. I practically grew up in that zoo. It was about 7km's away from our house and I used to cycle there 3 or 4 times a week.

Tygerberg zoo is NOT state sponsered. It is privately owned by John Spence for well over 35 years now and he has never received a cent from Government. He relies on private sponsers and fundraisings to foot the astronomic bill of running the zoo monthly.

The state of neglect that visitors sometimes complain about, is not due to not caring, but simply lack of funding.

You will see on every single animal cage, there is a notice saying that the animal in that cage was adopted by so and so. Once you adopt an animal you financially contribute with the keeping of that animal.

John does a lot for animal welfare and I think every single one of the chimps in that Zoo was rescued by him as orphans from Central Africa or circuses mistreating the animals.

The marks on the lioness' nose is from years of rubbing against the wire mesh and flies around lions (any meat eater actually) is part of the package and doesn't indicate neglect as such. If you walk into any farm yard, you'll find flies on every single animal. Does that mean they are mistreated or neglected? Don't think so.

I am not covering for Tygerberg Zoo and have no shares in the place. It just sometimes changes ones initial impression if you have more information.

wayne wilson · August 20, 2008, 03:20:03 PM

HI there,great explanation,we are saving wild animals from all over and even though they are wild we still need to spend money on medical and treatments and the herd of buffalow that was brought in from the DRC was so undernurished that we spend hundreds of thousands to feed them to get them back to health again,so funds are the most important thing to look after any animal,wild or domestic.regards wayne wilson.