HELP US RESCUE MIR & SIMBA
While working with our partnered NGO, Warriors of Wildlife, late last year and early into 2022, we successfully saved 5 lions and a tiger from a war-torn zoo in Ukraine. In March, we led a separate mission to save Masha the Eurasian Brown bear from another zoo nearby, when we then discovered another male lion in need of rescue.
Un-named at the time, Mir (meaning Peace in Ukrainian) was being kept in a zoo that could no longer afford to keep him, due mainly to the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The zoo was therefore left with a hard choice; shoot the lion or find him a new home, with the latter presenting a range of problems, most notably the fact that little to no transport options are currently available in the war zone.
Thankfully however, our partners and more specifically their director, Lionel De Lange, made arrangements to quickly move Mir, aged just 3 years old, to a temporary facility in Romania - away from harm.
A few months later, in June 2022, Lionel returned to Ukraine and discovered Simba, another male lion on death row, due to the war. Held captive in Zaporizhiye zoo, Ukraine, the area came under particularly heavy fire and is still entrenched in combat between Russian and Ukrainian forces. As such, the zoo was forced to close, leaving Simba with no food, water or staff support. Thankfully however, WoW was able to rescue Simba from the zoo, taking him to the same temporary facility as Mir in Romania, where the two male lions are now awaiting transport to their forever home.
Hercules, Cher, Jen, Aslan and Khaya are five lions we helped to rescue last year, taking them to Warriors of Wildlife's sanctuary, Simbonga in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. With your support, we can help Mir and Simba achieve the same outcome - permanently leaving their war torn "homes" in Ukraine and finding total peace in the African bushveld.
Please donate to Free The Wild today to help cover the logistical, medical and veterinary costs associated with the long journey from Romania to South Africa. This includes transport, medicines, permits, veterinary care and supplies, along with after care when they arrive in South Africa.
Our goal for this project is $12,000 - the faster we can raise these funds, the faster we'll be able to get Mir and Simba to safety.
Thank you for your amazing support and we look forward to bringing you all positive news and updates as the project progresses.
FTW ❤️
Mir was born in captivity on 14th September 2018 and kept confined in a small steel enclosure until the Ukraine War led to a lack of supplies and staff support. Following the conflict, the owners of the zoo decided that they could no longer afford to keep him.
Simba is a 10-year-old male lion that was also born in captivity. His original zoo home, Zaporizhiye Zoo, closed down during the Ukrainian War due to imminent threat and a lack of supplies. Homeless and uncared for, he has been moved to temporary shelter in Romania.
