Costa Blanca

Two African lions that were rescued in Ukraine bid farewell to Alicante

After two and a half years of rehabilitation at the Primadomus rescue centre in Villena (Alicante), two lions, male Sem and female Liena, who were three and five years old when the European animal welfare organisation AAP rescued them from the war in Ukraine, are headed to their forever home at the Isindile Big Cat & Predator sanctuary in South Africa.

In October 2022, they were discovered “completely abandoned” in the Donetsk region and brought to the AAP rescue centre in Spain. They received initial aid at the shelter near Kyiv from the Ukrainian organisation Wild Animal Rescue, which was “aware of the need to seek suitable rescue centres outside the country due to the conflict situation, the lack of adequate facilities, and the stress caused by the proximity of the war front.”

In particular, the animals were stressed by the surrounding gunfire and shelling, which drove them to strike the bars and gates of the Ukrainian animal sanctuary, the AAP said in a statement.

Together with two other lions, they reached AAP Primadomus in Villena after travelling more than 3,600 kilometres. In these 3,000-square-meter facilities, they have gradually been able to move past the scars of their past. They have gone from being traumatised animals that would hide in the vegetation at the slightest sound and constantly growl to others who are finding peace and learning to use their senses to find food.

Develop your instincts

Both of them “have regained their peace ,” according to the AAP, “which has allowed them to return to optimal condition and the opportunity to socialise with each other, thus helping with their physical, social, and behavioural rehabilitation .”

Both lions received specialised care from the organisation, which has since located “the best place for the animals to spend the rest of their lives.” This is South Africa’s Isindile Big Cat & Predator Sanctuary. Their demands will be met by a 10,000 m² facility in the middle of nature where they can live “a dignified life and develop their wild instincts.”

After rehabilitation, the organisation seeks a “permanent home” for these animals “in renowned sanctuaries and zoos,” according to Pablo Delgado, director of the Villena rescue centre and head of the AAP Big Cats area. This is done in order to provide other specimens in need of assistance with “the opportunity to come to the rescue centre to recover from their past.”

A voyage of this kind necessitates meticulous planning. The animals must be acclimated to their boxes in order to reduce any stress the trip may create, in addition to all the licenses and paperwork needed for a transcontinental trip.

More animals who have been rescued

The AAP in Ukraine has rescued more animals besides Sem and Liena. Since the conflict began, 12 animals—nine lions, one monkey, one leopard, and one wild dog—the majority of which were owned privately in the nation, have been able to find “a safe place to recover at the organization’s facilities” in Spain.

“The organization’s rehoming partners have found a permanent home for nearly all of them, who are now fully recovered. Sadly, the issue of exotic animal ownership as pets is not specific to nations like Ukraine. The AAP highlights that one of the biggest marketplaces for exotic pets worldwide is the European Union, which has an impact on biodiversity, public health, and pet welfare.

According to the organisation, some of these creatures “end up, hopefully, in rescue centres like those run by AAP, where Sem and Liena have been given a second chance to recover their lion form.”

“At AAP, we will continue working to achieve better regulation of the ownership and trade of exotic pets throughout Europe, to prevent more animals from suffering an uncertain fate, living a life of suffering they should never have been forced to endure,” says the group.

Credit: Facebook https://www.facebook.com/aapprimadomus

Discover more from Costa Blanca Daily

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Related Topics:Alicante Europe Health Public Social Spain Strike Villena

Up Next

Elche jihadists arrested

Don't Miss

Two weeks after a robbery in Catral the culprit has been identified

Click to comment

Costa Blanca

Elche mother sentenced to 19 years for the murder of her son and the abuse of her twins

A woman has been sentenced to a total of 19 years and seven and a half months in prison by the Jury Court of the Seventh Section of the Alicante Court, which is located in Elche. She was convicted of murdering her two-year-old son in Bigastro by suffocation after having routinely abused him, as she had done with her other sons.

The Court, which upheld the jury’s verdict, convicted her of one count of murder, another count of habitual abuse, and six counts of bodily harm. The Court considered the aggravating circumstance of kinship and the mitigating circumstances of confession, undue delay, and acting under the influence of drugs.

The convicted woman is required to pay €100,000 in compensation to each of the deceased’s two brothers, as well as an additional €10,000 to the deceased’s twin, for the injuries and after-effects he experienced as a result of the incident.

A house in the town of Bigastro was the residence of the mother and her children, who were two-year-old twins and a nine-year-old girl at the time, as indicated by the statement of proven facts in the sentence. The convicted woman struck the twins with a variety of objects on the head, torso, or extremities and shook them on at least six occasions, resulting in multiple fractures.

On June 11th, 2022, the woman returned from the park with the two children and, after putting one of them to bed, grabbed the other by the neck and squeezed him until he perished by strangulation, the attacks continued repeatedly, establishing a climate of peaceful disruption.

The jury determined that the defendant’s psychological state was exacerbated by her drug use since the age of 20, which had a detrimental impact on her willpower at the time of the homicide. The prosecution and defence concurred with the Prosecutor’s Office during the oral hearing, while the defendant acknowledged the facts. The Alicante Court’s sentence is not definitive and may be appealed to the Civil and Criminal Division of the TSJCV.

Discover more from Costa Blanca Daily

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Costa Blanca

A second runway at Alicante-Elche Airport has been rejected by the government

As per a parliamentary response to PP senator Agustín Almodóbar, the Government has disregarded the long-awaited second runway for the Miguel Hernández airport in Alicante-Elche, at least for the next few years. Almodóbar emphasised that the airport has experienced a surge in traffic of over two million travellers in a single year.

“Do you not believe that it would be necessary, given the increasing demand, and that the investment would be more than justified, as has been long demanded by Alicante institutions and society?” The Popular Party leader enquired, characterising the work that Pedro Sánchez’s administration had planned as “insufficient”.

Nevertheless, the Upper House’s response is unequivocal: “Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport currently possesses modern, secure facilities, as well as competitive pricing and an adequate capacity to satisfy air traffic demand and ensure the mobility of its residents.”

The government contends that the “airport manager” already conducts “planning” in accordance with “operational needs and expected traffic demand”, and AENA predicts “future behaviour” in the “sizing” of these infrastructures.

At present, the project is anticipated to encompass “adaptation of the terminal and traffic areas”, as stated in the technical description of the works that were tendered in January of last year. This is part of the first segment of Asistencia Técnica de Redacción de Proyecto (Technical Assistance for Project Draughting,) which is valued at €19.8 million.

In contrast, the second runway is “envisioned as the airport’s ultimate expansion in the current Master Plan and will be constructed only when it is deemed necessary to satisfy the anticipated demand, as determined by technical criteria.”

Discover more from Costa Blanca Daily

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Costa Blanca

Police prevent three squatters from taking over an Alicante home

According to sources from the City Council, three squatters were apprehended after the intervention of officers from the Sant Vicent del Raspeig (Alicante) Local Police and the Guardia Civil prevented them from invading a residence.

On Saturday March 15th, the Benemérita requested the municipal security force’s intervention in response to an alleged attempt by multiple suspects to occupy the property.

The main post had been previously contacted to report an additional purported illegal entry on Velázquez Street.

The Guardia Civil assisted the local police officers in the arrest after they made several arrangements with the householder. The police arrived immediately. The suspects were transported to the headquarters of the State Security Forces.