The lion population is decreasing and yet there is one place where you can find plenty. South Africa, known for its stunning beaches, breathtaking national parks and delicious wines is now making a name for itself as the hub of a notorious industry;
lion farms.
In South Africa it is legal to farm lions, but that isn't the worst part. The lions are bred, the cubs are ripped away from their mothers within days of being born and used as tourist attractions until they are old enough to be hunted and killed in what are known as "canned hunts" - enclosed areas where captive lions are released with no chance of escape and then shot by wealthy hunters from the West.
In fact it's as easy as going online, choosing the lion you want to kill and pressing click. In just a few days you are on a plane heading to South Africa ready to shoot a lion.
In many of these cases, these lion farms dupe volunteers to come and "care" for the cubs. They tell them the cubs were orphaned and that once they are old enough they will be released. What they don't tell them is that they will be released into a fenced enclosure where they will quickly meet their demise.
In the last twenty years lion farms and canned hunts have boomed. There are around 200 of them with a total of 6,000 to 8,000 lions and at this rate, it's estimated that there will be 20,000 lions in captivity waiting for a bullet by 2020.
We must continue to work to end this horrible practice and save these majestic beasts from the end of a gun. This industry is cruel and disgusting and it needs to be banned today. Tell South Africa the world is watching. Tell them to ban the cruel lion farms today.
