Tell South African authorities to ban cruel captive breeding of lions for profit
Up to 12,000 lions suffer in captive breeding facilities in South Africa. In these facilities, lions are intensively bred and ripped away from their mothers at just a few days old to be exploited for tourist props. Once the lions are too dangerous for human interactions, they are killed for the bone trade or sold for canned trophy hunts where they are shot in enclosed spaces.
This industry is not only incredibly cruel, but poorly regulated. An April 2019 inspection of a captive breeding facility reveals just how far the cruelty extends. Inspectors found big cats at a facility in the North West province living in overcrowded enclosures, without access to water and exposed to filthy and parasitic conditions. Lion cubs appeared to be suffering from a neurological condition that left them unable to walk.