Born free / Lions in Tenerife

[LUCKY]

:feret::feret:
A friend of mine as just returned from Tenerife. Well a week ago and yesterday was telling me about some lions in Tenerife with connections to born free . He said he had seen them many years ago can anybody please shed some light on this subject. With links if appropriate and photographs
Thank you
:feret::feret:

[Margaretta]

I remember something about that years and years ago Lucky.Two lions over a restaurant porchway to attract customers I think. I think all that was dealt with and the Jungle Park and Loro Park were set up as businesses and conservation projects but also to counteract any bad press about ill-treatment of wild animals.

Twenty four years ago we took our daughter to a really poor, cramped 'zoo' above Puerto which was soon closed. The street photographers, now with parrots, had tiny lion cubs....hubby was so horrified he nearly socked one man when he pushed for our little daughter to be photographed with one!
But then the worlds' attitudes have changed a lot over the last few years and there is much more animal awareness, education and many improved conditions now so I'm not sure that resurrecting the past will really help.

[Red Devil]

I think a lion or lions were kept in a compound on the roof of a building somewhere above where the Vulcano hotel is situated.
They had been abandoned by their owner so Born Free got involved to remove them and give sanctuary, or similar story to that anyway. Hard to believe that could have been allowed to happen.
Would that have been around early 1990's?
I remember many years ago walking around the area where they had been, it was an abandoned eyesore

[bulldog]

I think a lion or lions were kept in a compound on the roof of a building somewhere above where the Vulcano hotel is situated.
They had been abandoned by their owner so Born Free got involved to remove them and give sanctuary, or similar story to that anyway. Hard to believe that could have been allowed to happen.
Would that have been around early 1990's?
I remember many years ago walking around the area where they had been, it was an abandoned eyesore

its a single storey building behind City Centre shopping centre in L.A.opposite Parque
Santiago 2.its still there but in a bad state of repair it was like a mini zoo the owner went
a little doolally ,still around I believe he lives on the streets he was feeding the lions on
tinned dog food it was in the mid eighty,s till about 1991/2 Arona townhall was slow to close
it down and outside help did re-home most animals and parrots my youngest son only about
10 years old then went to school near there unbelievably the owner used to pay school kids
a few pesatas to clean out the cages [not the lions I hope]!!!

[Santiago]

The first lions to arrive at Shamwari were Raffi and Anthea, rescued from a Tenerife restaurant where they could only take one and a half paces in each direction. They arrived in 1997 and died in 2006, aged nearly 18 years, after nine years in their ancestral homeland.

Shamwari is a wildlife reserve on the Eastern Cape of South Africa and has strong links with the Born Free Foundation.

Campaign ActionAfrican Big Cat Rescue
Lion Conservation
Tiger Conservation
Jaguar Conservation
Big Cat Project In Action Today
We rescued Anthea and Raffi from a tiny cage in TenerifeMany thousands of big cats are kept in appalling conditions in zoos, circuses and as exotic pets. Some of the lucky ones, like Raffi and Anthea the lions who originated from the roof of a bar in Tenerife, are rescued by Born Free and relocated to our centres in Shamwari, South Africa or Banneghatta, India. There the transformation is remarkable as a formally abused and neglected animal regains some of its natural majesty.

While caring for individuals is a top priority Born Free also invests considerable resources in protecting wild big cat populations including lions in many parts of Africa and saving tigers from the brink of extinction in India. Born Free is determined the African lion will not go the way of the tiger and become the next conservation crisis. Currently 600 lion ‘trophies’ a year are legally killed and removed from Africa, which we believe is accelerating the decline of the species. Born Free campaigns to end this ‘sport’ hunting.

“I love doing the work, because I do it out of my heart. It’s great to see Shamwari working its magic on the rescued cats."
Glen Vena
Born Free’s Animal Care Manager, Shamwari.

See details at: http://www.bornfree.org.uk/campaigns/big-cats/big-cat-rescue/

There are lots of references to the two lions on Google. I remember seeing them on the roof and also seeing the touts with the chimpanzees on the promenade near the Palm Beach apartments and the Tenerife Sol hotel.

[timmylish]

Santiago. Very many thanks for the info and update on the unfortunate Lions who were unfortunate enough to be in the "care" of the bampot in PDLA. At that time I seem to recall that the lookie guys had Lions Pups on the streets of LA! Really hard to believe nowadays. The little Zoo between LC and Guaza (Opposte the DISA facing the TF1) was a dump as recently as 1998/2000. Something HAD to be done and was!

[LUCKY]

:
feret::feret:
It was on my friends return from Tenerife that prompted me to post this thread
he told me he may have some photographs he had taken about 25 years ago (he was only guessing ) If i can obtain copies of the photographs i will display them on here.
Meanwhile does anyone have any links or photos that they could post
Thank you
:feret::feret:

[Margaretta]

Santiago, It's very humbling to hear about your wholehearted commitment to the cause. thank you for your informative post.
I'm nosey Lucky; are you writing a book?:wink2:

[LUCKY]

Santiago, It's very humbling to hear about your wholehearted commitment to the cause. thank you for your informative post.
I'm nosey Lucky; are you writing a book?:wink2:
No i am not writing a book, Just trying to fill up the Internet!!!
I am just curious about these lions after my friend told me the story, just looking for pictures on line , with help from other people.
:feret::feret:

[Rickiebear]

I remember something about that years and years ago Lucky.Two lions over a restaurant porchway to attract customers I think. I think all that was dealt with and the Jungle Park and Loro Park were set up as businesses and conservation projects but also to counteract any bad press about ill-treatment of wild animals.

Twenty four years ago we took our daughter to a really poor, cramped 'zoo' above Puerto which was soon closed. The street photographers, now with parrots, had tiny lion cubs....hubby was so horrified he nearly socked one man when he pushed for our little daughter to be photographed with one!
But then the worlds' attitudes have changed a lot over the last few years and there is much more animal awareness, education and many improved conditions now so I'm not sure that resurrecting the past will really help.

I remember taking my small children to that zoo above Puerto it must be at least 25 years ago. The cages were very flimsy. She had some baby pigs that she was trying to train to do tricks in a ring. One or two escaped and ran around the place, she was too frightened to catch them, so I did in the end. ( We kept pigs at the time, so even the children helped).

[AL JAY]

I can also remember the mini zoo down the pathway behind the CC Centro Shopping Centre opposite Parque Santiago 2,We used to hear Parrots squawking but didn't realise at the time that they kept Lions there too, also in the same location was The Tom Keenan Country Club that used to get packed to the rafters nightly until he was forced to close and he moved to Puerto Colon!!!