Five lions and twelve tigers,that were rescued from circus life and re-homed in South Africa a year ago, are thriving. The rescue mission conducted by Animal Defenders International (ADI) included airlifting the animals from Guatemala and bringing them to South Africa.
The animals are residing at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary and are happy as can be, according to the welfare organisation.
The mission, which began on January 18 2020 and ended three days later was part of an effort to help enforce Guatemala’s ban on animals in circuses.
ADI was warned that they needed to leave the country by January 21 2020 or risk losing the animals entirely.
‘Organizing a flight like this normally takes weeks, but ADI was racing against time as flight after flight was blocked due to landing and security restrictions on flights from Guatemala. With just days to spare, ADI secured an escape route through Mexico, Belgium, and Qatar,’ said the organisaiton.
‘At the time, no one realized that a delay of just eight weeks would have seen the animals locked down in Guatemala due to COVID-19. This really was the great escape,’ explained ADI.
The animals are thriving in their natural environment. Take a look at them in the video below.
Image: Unsplash
