Great news: Yesterday brothers Simba and Rey Ayacucho were reunited at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary after Simba’s brief stay at Old Chapel Veterinary Clinic and the boys were clearly delighted to see each other today!

Inseparable since their rescue by ADI from a small circus cage in Peru eleven years ago, there was a lot of head rubbing, kissing, and nuzzling as the two senior citizens (both over 17 years old) were reunited. Simba had been taken into hospital after suffering occasional nosebleeds.

After several days of observation with no further nosebleeds, Dr Caldwell sedated him for a thorough physical examination. He found a large soft tissue mass that could be causing the nosebleeds, but it is not something which can be tackled clinically. Simba’s long-term issues remain, he is elderly now, with chronic health issues related to his former circus life, including arthritis and spondylosis of the neck.

Dr Caldwell confirmed that Simba will continue to need close monitoring but for now he has a quality of life and the best place for him was with brother Rey. The boys certainly seemed to agree as they kissed and cuddled yesterday morning. Simba and Rey A are incredibly close and many will remember their joyous reunion a few years ago when Rey returned from hospital, they nuzzled, played and, despite his arthritis, old Simba skipped around his friend.

Across the Sanctuary, our residents enjoying their early Halloween treats thanks to everyone who has been supporting our Annual Halloween Fundraiser.

With a shortage locally of pumpkins this year (and our home-grown sanctuary pumpkins and watermelons already given out) our team threw their efforts into Halloween themed catnip sacks and boxes.

The animals clearly have a lot of fun with the different treats we provide and its worth remembering that this enrichment plays an important role keeping the them physically and mentally healthy.

Watch out next Friday for our 2025 ADIWS Halloween video, but in the meantime you can enjoy last year’s fun here.

There’s still time to support our Halloween Fundraiser because any extra funds raised will be used to keep the animals playing until the end of the year! You can still show your support through our Facebook fundraiser or ADIWS enrichment donate page for UK/Euros/Rand or US $, CA $.

Please also remember the importance of ongoing veterinary care, especially for senior residents link Simba, and consider a special donation to celebrate this old warriors homecoming: Donate UK/Euros/Rand | Donate US $, CA $.