Feeding the lions - July 2012

On one of my days off over the summer I had a bit of a belated Birthday present involving a big cat keeper for the day at the Zoo. For me I just wanted another excuse to get close to the lions at the zoo, and it was fantastic. However it also gave me an insight as to feeding the lions.

The pictures below show me placing the bedding into the Lion House, having swept and mopped the floor and cleaned the walls, Two full bags of oat straw and sawdust are placed into the bedroom.

Having cleaned the Lion House out, we went to feed the lions. Zuri was not really that hungry and was more interested with some company as proven by the photos below, however Safina was a little bit more than interested than Zuri and was more than happy to eat her fair share. The lions are not feed these small pieces very often, and are generally fed complete carcasses, that are carefully prepared before. This is more natural as they get a little bit of everything, and also still get to use their teeth and claws, to tear away the skin and the meat to eat. Another common question asked at the Zoo, is when we are going to feed the lions. We feed all the cats in the evening when it is cooler, this simulates more of what they would do in the wild. In the wild lions will spend the hotter parts of the day sleeping conserving their energy, and when it gets cooler that is when they will start to hunt, as it is more comfortable for them to do so. In the zoo however it is also gives them a bit more privacy too.

It was a fantastic opportunity however I must admit that I do prefer being with the lions, without the food involved. Mixing food and affection with lions is very tricky business so when I was this close I did have to be extra careful, as having just fed them they may mistake my fingers for more, this is why the glove was taken off straight away, so that if I did have my hands close to the bars, my hand should not smell just like the meat did.

I hope you have all enjoyed this post and all the photos.

James