Husbandry & Veterinary

The program’s animal husbandry protocols have been developed over a period of 20 years of working with lions and adapted using the “Guidelines / Specific Concerns for Hand Rearing Carnivores” as prepared by the Zoological Society of San Diego and in light of the ethical guidelines as produced by PAAZAB.

No two sets of cubs follow the same timeline, however, this chronology gives a guideline that is adapted to the individual lion.

It is important that the area around the nursery enclosure be kept quiet so as not to scare the cubs.  They will sleep a lot in the first few days and should never be woken if asleep.  Avoid quick movements and DO NOT PICK UP unless absolutely necessary to do so using the method described above.  Do not wrap them in towels and blankets as they can get too warm which will cause their fur to fall out.

One handler should be assigned to raise the cubs who will act as a surrogate mother.  It is from the confidence in their own safety whilst with their “mother” that will enable the cubs to experience their wild environment.

The first attempt at feeding using specially formulated milk should be at 2200h on the day they are removed.  They will likely only drink five or 10ml of milk if any at all.  If they show no interest at all, leave the cubs for six hours and try again.  Continue with a six-hour break between attempts until the cubs start suckling on the teat.  It is acceptable to have them try and suck on your finger if it helps get them used to the idea of a teat.  This practice must be stopped immediately they start suckling from the bottle.

Marking each young cub with a livestock marker can be done to eliminate confusion until their physical and behavioural differences are apparent, and make record keeping easier and more accurate.

They will drink small amounts at a time, have a rest, and then come back to it.  As they get older, they will speed up and what they have not finished after around 20 minutes should be taken away.  If they are able to keep coming back, they will learn that they can take their time about it and feeding will become laborious.

The cubs will need to be stimulated to go to the toilet for the first week until they can regularly go on their own.  To stimulate a cub to urinate or defecate, rub your finger, or a warm, damp cloth, around the location you want them to excrete from.  It can take up to 15 minutes for the desired response.  If you get no response after 15 minutes, leave it for an hour and repeat the procedure.  At this age they will urinate several times a day and defecate once every two or three days.

During winter when the nights are very cold, you can put a hot water bottle under the bedding in the den for them to sleep on; this will simulate their mother’s body heat.  The bottle must be insulated from direct contact with the cubs’ skin as it could easily burn them.

Use warm, damp cloth to wipe the cubs, which will simulate their mother licking them.

Once their front teeth have erupted introduce meat in mince form.  Some milk can be added to this to help them with their new diet.

Milk feeds at 0600h, 1000h, 1400h & 2000h.  Milk and mince feed at 1800h.  As the cubs grow, every time they drink all their milk on each feed for a couple of days, the milk amount should be increased at 25ml intervals.  By nine-weeks of age, they will be drinking around 200ml per feed.

The mince content should start with around 125g mixed with 75ml of milk, the meat can be increased if the cubs do not look too “round” after eating, and the milk should be removed after a week.

The cubs will spend less and less time in the den and when they regularly sleep at night outside it can be removed.

Regular checks should be made of any bedding provided to eliminate potential hazards.  Strings or small holes in bedding can contribute to serious injury or death from strangulation.

After the eruption of the back teeth, the mince feed should be replaced with meat, starting with shin meat.  The amount of meat a cub should receive per day is roughly the size of the cub’s head.  To start with, cut the meat up very small and on each feed increase the size of the meat until they are able to handle whole chunks by learning how to use their dew claw.  This may take up to a week to achieve.

The cubs are used to eating meat pieces that are small enough to swallow whole.  As they move on to larger pieces of meat it is possible that the cub may choke on it to start with as they try and swallow too much at one time.  If this happens, hold the cub with one hand under the chest and firmly slap the cub with an open palm on the side of their chest to release the blockage.

At four-months old change the feed to milk feeds at 0600h and 1800h and meat feed at 1200h.

At eight-months-old the meat feed should become every three days and the size adjusted accordingly.  The feeding schedule should be reviewed regularly as the cub grows, taking into account what animals they kill for themselves.

Throughout the lions’ life it is necessary to provide age appropriate enrichment using natural materials for those times that the lion is in an enclosure and not on walks. Adequate space for exercise and exposure to sunlight are also important.

If you are having trouble getting the teat into the cub’s mouth, slip it in the side of their mouth and move the teat to the front. It is likely they will start drinking once the teat is around the front. As they still have no teeth until around five-weeks old it is all right for them to chew on the teat at this age as this is what they would do on their mother to stimulate the milk. Their back teeth will come through at approx. two months and that is when they need to be taught not to chew by disciplining them when they do; their mother teaches them when they are no longer allowed to chew on her.

Overfeeding is perhaps the most significant risk.  The guidelines for determining gastric capacity are 50ml of fluid per kg of body weight.  Serious problems can arise when carnivores are over-fed.  These include but may not be limited to the formation of excessive gas, diarrhea, vomiting, blood in the stool, gut stasis and painful bloat.

Cubs must be made to sit in front of you with their head raised when feeding.  By holding the bottle very firmly at the end you can ensure that the cub stays in one place and avoids you getting clawed if they try to grab the bottle.  Hold the bottle at an angle low enough so that the cub does not have to strain its neck up to feed.  Some cubs do feed with their head to one side, and this is fine.  Never feed a cub lying on its back or when holding it.  If the cub moves from the position we want it to feed in, simply pull the bottle away, and hold it in front of the cub at the best position.  The cub will soon learn that it has to sit in a certain way to be fed.  If the cub starts to sit up too high, simply push the bottle towards them and down.  They will move back into the position you want them.

Cubs often hold a paw up and will rest it on your hand or leg.  This is fine as it is exactly what they would do on their mother when feeding.  Should they bring their claws out however, you should slap the paw and say “no”.

After every feed the cubs’ eyes and face should be wiped down with a warm, damp cloth and then dried.  Excess milk or meat on their faces or bodies will cause other cubs to lick them excessively and may result in a loss of fur as well as attracting biting flies.

Routine protocols:

1. Permanent identification of all lions in the program to be carried out by placing a microchip subcutaneously at the base of the left ear.
2. All lions to receive vaccinations (including rabies) according to veterinary recommendations.
3. All confined lions to be de-wormed three times a year, alternating the active ingredient at each de-worming.
4. All confined lions to have their external parasite burden kept low by regular application of acaricide.
5. All lions to have frequent health inspections, with sedated examinations if veterinary problems present. Full diagnostic work-ups (including sending of samples to South Africa when necessary) and veterinary treatment to be given as necessary.
6. All confined lions to be fed a dietary supplement (Carnivore Mix) to supplement essential vitamins and minerals which may be deficient in the cuts of meat fed.
7. Females not intended for breeding to be spayed.

Protocol for animals destined for release:

1. Genetic sampling and screening to plan for inclusion in the release program (i.e. prevent inbreeding).
2. Depending on the requirements of the region to which the lions are going, blood screens, and specific disease testing will be carried out where appropriate. Lions may have to be quarantined for 30 days prior to departure from Antelope Park, with blood (or other) tests performed at the beginning of the period.
3. Animals to be free of internal and external parasites (de-wormed and an acaricide applied) just prior to transport to new area.

“Enclosure size for one or two medium animals should be 600 square feet [56 m²] at a minimum.   Enclosure size for one large animal weighing over 60 lbs [27kg] should be 1,200 square feet [110 m²] at a minimum. Each additional animal requires an increase of 25% of the original floor space.”  Source:  Big Cat Rescue’s Exotic Cat Standards, 

Most regulatory bodies do not encourage the promulgation of minimum enclosure size regulations as all too often such rulings are taken as the sole criterion for the evaluation of enclosures, and as a result, other requirements for the maintenance of species behavioural integrity are either overlooked or ignored.

A lot of attention is paid to behavioural enrichment in the Program.  All enclosures include some form of enrichment for the animals such as trees to climb, for use as a scratching post or to provide shade.  Some have dens, ramps or other heavy duty toys designed to withstand play by a lion.  Additional stimuli is also regularly provided such as blood and meat frozen in ice blocks for them to lick, or the dung of species found in the Park to sniff and roll in.