Drakenstein Lion park, “Samson”

Drakenstein Lion park, “Samson”

As promised, here is the next article about the Drakenstein Lion Park :
As explained it in the previous post, the Drakenstein Lion Park is a place where lions have access to a new and better life.
This week we decided to tell you Samson’s story.

Samson in his new home
Samson was born in approximately 2003 and was rescued and arrived at the Sanctuary on 10/12/2008.
Samson was rescued from a French circus where he was kept in the most appalling conditions. He spent most of his life in solitary confinement, jailed in a small circus trailer with barely enough room to move.
Samson’s relocation was made possible by :
Refuge De Le Arche, Foundation Assistance Aux Animaux and Animal Travel Services (www.animal-travel.com/) who once again assisted with the import free of charge.
Samson’s enclosure was sponsored by the Marchig Animal Welfare Trust.

Discover the “Drakenstein Lion Park Sanctury”

Discover the “Drakenstein Lion Park Sanctury”

“Goldenway International Pets and Live Animals” has had the chance to visit the Drakenstein Lion Park with our friends Animal Travel Services (www.animal-travel.com/) in Cape Town.

This experience was unforgettable and we would like to share it with you !  You will discover the life of those rescued lions and see how much the Drakenstein Lion Park Sanctury is engaged to save them.

But first, let’s start with the beginning and let us introduce the Drakenstein Lion Park Sanctury :

The Lion Park was established in 1998 to provide lions in distress with sanctuary, where they could live in safety, free from abuse and persecution, and be treated with the compassion and respect they deserved.

The Park is situated in the scenic Cape Winelands and comprises of 50 acres of sprawling lion habitat.

The Park is actively involved in improving the quality of life of lions in captivity, locally as well as internationally, either by offering these animals a lifetime home or working in conjunction with other animal welfare organizations to secure a safe future for individual animals in dire need.

The Park is not involved in commercial breeding or trade and offers lifetime care to all of it’s animals. All the animals brought to the Park are captive bred / hand reared and cannot be rehabilitated to the wild.

The animals at the Park are assured a chance of living out their natural lives in an enriched and safe environment.

The engagement of the Drakenstein Lion Park in rescueing lions doesn’t have any limit and they deserve to be more known and recognized by all.

So don’t miss our next episode to keep discovering the second life of those Kings of the Savannah !!

Beware of Pet Scams

Beware of pet scams

Over the festive season you may want to surprise your loved ones with the pet they have always wished for.  Beware of the many pet scams you can come across online.  Pet scammers seemed to have changed direction these past years.  They don’t only pretend to sell you a pedigree pet at an amazing price anymore, they will now offer you a pet free of charge, for which all you need to do is pay the transport costs.  Note this could be any animal from a kitten to a horse.

How to check if you are being scammed:

–          Check the email & the email address

The old adage comes to mind, “if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is”.  Scam emails are full of various different fonts and spelling mistakes. They copy real company logos and text, also scammers will always use a free email address, with the name of a real pet transport company, for example nameofrealcompany@gmail.com

–          Check the phone number

Scammers will not be where they state they are.  They may not give you their telephone number at first. If ever they do, always check the country code of the number given.  Note +237 is Cameroon, where unfortunately a lot of internet frauds take place. http://countrycode.org/

–          Check the image

You can receive pictures of the pet in question which will make your heart melt, especially if the scammers say that they can’t keep the pet anymore and you would be saving the pet by assuring the transport costs.  In a pet scam the animal doesn’t exist, the images are merely pictures taken from other legitimate websites.  Google the breed of the pet and search the images to see if you can find the same image.

–          Be aware of how you are asked to send payment

Refuse to send any money to your contact when it cannot be traced, ie. Western Union; Pay Cards, etc. Once payment has left, there is no way of following it.   Always ask for an invoice before any payment is made and make sure the invoice has the usual necessary information to be able to trace the company, ie. Name, address, business registration, detail of invoice and total amount.

–          Check the company

Once you have it, Google the pet shipper’s name.  You may come across a real pet shipping company, who you can ask to confirm that the email address you have or the emails you are receiving are from their company.

Be overall cautious online and always prefer to adopt a pet from your local pet rescue shelter (http://www.spa.asso.fr); or buy from a reputable breeder.

How to choose your pets flight cage

When relocating your family pet by flight, care must be taken to ensure their comfort and security at all times.   Your pet must have enough space to turn about normally in its flight cage whilst standing, to stand and to sit erect and to lie in a natural position.  To ensure you choose the correct cage, take a look at the step by step guide below.

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