Little Ori looks adorable in the picture above, except it’s not a cute image, it’s tragic.

At this age, young Ori should still have been nursing with his mother, but instead, he was torn from her to become a product for sale in the illegal wildlife trade. He was passed from person to person, forced to be cuddled and posed with, as his owners enjoyed the status of owning a #TrophyPet lion. Deprived of everything he needed, forced into dependency on humans. But the day this picture was taken, Ori’s luck changed.

Ori was confiscated from a house by Israel’s Nature & Parks Authority (NPA) in a crackdown on illegally trafficked animals. He had been stolen from his mother so young that he was desperate for human attention, but Ori had another lucky break. Less than a week earlier, NPA had seized another cub, Ben-Tzur, after he was found tied to a tree. There is every chance the pair are brothers; certainly, they have become loving brothers. Ben-Tzur has helped Ori regain his confidence, reassuring him when he is nervous, and helping him become a lion again. Being with Ori has also helped Ben-Tzur’s confidence.

Now, the boys are on the brink of another giant step: A new life at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary in South Africa.

We have been working since January to bring the boys home and are one permit away from confirming their flight. They needed to get out fast as they are outgrowing their temporary space – ADI took the financial risk and said yes.

With your help, Ori and Ben-Tzur have almost their entire lives ahead of them, not tied to a tree, not living in a basement being passed from person to person but roaming acres of space in the land of their ancestors.

We must fight back against the traffickers, we must enforce laws, and help officials seize animals – sometimes the window of opportunity is tiny. Please help ADI help enforce laws, bring Ori and Ben-Tzur home, and care for them for life.

Can you help us bring them to a new life, today? Donate £, Euros, Rand | Donate US $, CA $