We remain optimistic that cargo flights out of Israel to bring our rescued lions BenTzur and Ori are going to resume soon, although, another week has passed with no news. Despite all the talk in the media about the Memorandum of Understanding which everyone hopes will lead to an actual peace deal, the region remains gridlocked due to the war, and so we wait. And the boys are growing, fast!

We remain on high alert, keeping in touch with the relevant parties, and we will seize the first opportunity to bring the boys to their new life, home in Africa, at the ADI Wildlife Sanctuary.

After they were seized, BenTzur and Ori have remained in the zoo which provided a place of safety until a home could be found, so, they have now waited for over a year. You will recall we only took over the rescue in February. The Israel wildlife officials have sent us these recent video clips.

As you will see, they are going to be very big boys, and will never have walked or rolled about in grass, run at full speed, never seen other wildlife, nor open sky. Never conversed with other lions. They will hear the morning and evening roaring songs and will learn to join in. They have good teachers at ADIWS – across the road are Rey Ayacucho, Kesari, and Chino and Coco.

We know from previous experience they will start to run, explore, express themselves, take charge of their new territory. They will build muscle chasing around, exploring their new habitat, meeting the local rabbits, mongooses, hares, ground squirrels and other inhabitants. They will fall asleep each night under the African sky in the land of their ancestors, surrounded by their own kind.

Nothing stands still at ADIWS. We have been joined by four adorable barn owl chicks this week. A farmer nearby called us after finding the four chicks had fallen down the back of a grain silo; the parents had not been seen for several days, so feared poisoned or shot and the chicks were getting into serious difficulties.

Brent, ADIWS Wildlife & Education Director, has experience rearing and returning birds to the wild and has taken in the four (as yet unnamed), chicks (suggestions for names are welcome). They are gorgeous, already eating well and we will report on their progress with regular “Owl Watch” videos.

As the line from the movie Field of Dreams goes, “If you build it, they will come” – this could have been written about our Non-Predator Reception Area which has a regular stream of new residents needing our help – calves, goats, peacocks, baby and adult tortoises, antelope (like Springbok Percy and Daisy) and more.

Events outside of our control this year have put a lot of pressure on us. We took in the two lions, Lei-ah and Elsa, covering all food, veterinary and care costs, for what is now expected to be at least a year. The ladies filled our 2.5-acre Stephi quarantine habitat, so this presented a problem for the rescue of Ben and Ori, which we took over at short notice.

The only way to provide homes for everyone has been to move several residents around, but we had to make modifications to their new habitats, costing tens of thousands of dollars. Watch the video of Muheeb, Saif, Dhubiya and Aziza moving into new homes here

The war in the middle east has sent fuel and transport costs rocketing, impacting everything we do, supplies, transport, fencing. Most significantly, the move of Ori and BenTzur is expected to now become our most expensive rescue, per animal.  We must raise $40,000 just to cover their relocation costs, including flights, ground transport, airport fees. Demand for space on flights is huge, so we need to be ready to act fast and seize the first opportunity.

We are still a long way short of our appeal target, so please help if you can. 

BenTzur and Ori have waited too long for their new life, please help bring them home.

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The Government’s public consultation on trail hunting closes on Thursday 18 June, so we have just one week for you to have your say and help end the cruelty.

Trail hunting sounds benign, but since the Hunting Act 2004 banned the hunting of most wild mammals with dogs in England and Wales, it has been used as a loophole to continue the killing.

In theory, trail hunting involves laying a scent for the hunt to follow instead of chasing a wild animal. However, multiple investigations and court cases have shown how hunts frequently fail to follow the pre-laid scents, or even lay a scent trail at all, but continue to kill animals.

Even without these abuses, trail hunting will always put wildlife at risk with hunters and packs of dogs accidentally or recklessly pursuing wildlife – the ‘trail hunting’ theory is what the hunters have hidden behind for two decades.

The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has launched a public consultation on whether to ban trail hunting in England and Wales. They need to hear from YOU.

Consultations like this shape animal welfare laws and show politicians that people care. The animals can’t take part, but you can be their voice. It’s easy for you to help them.

Please go to our webpage TODAY.  This provides a link to the consultation and we have provided suggestions for answers to questions – you can use these, or use your own answers. Click here to take part.

Thank you for speaking out for the animals.

To help ADI campaigns worldwide, donate here.

After a tough two-year campaign, this week, Bill 06/24S – 466/25C has passed its final committee stage in Colombia’s House of Representatives, making sex acts with animals and the online distribution of videos of such abuse a criminal offence. 

Importantly, amendments secured by the ADI Colombia team were approved – to increase prison sentences and fines for these sickening offences. In addition to the acts of cruelty, prison sentences will be imposed on those profiting from the abuse, recording and disseminating pornographic videos of these perverted acts online, profiting from cruelty, and repeating a cruel act with the same animal. The law supports an education and awareness campaign to prevent such behaviour, and for people to report such abuse.

The bill will now be reconciled in Congress and then go for Presidential approval, with ADI’s team in Colombia confident it will become law.

A huge thank you to Senator Esmeralda Hernández, the bill’s principal author, sponsors, Senator Germán Blanco and Iván Cepeda and Representatives Gabriel Becerra, and Juan Carlos Losada, the members of Congress who supported this initiative and, of course our ADI team in Colombia led by Yani Mateus and Eduardo Peña.

We have seen how the internet and social media has opened a door to dark human depravity, from pornographic videos of animals being sexually abused to the revolting cruelty videos where people pay to watch monkeys, kittens and other animals tortured. ADI is campaigning to pressurise social media companies to take responsibility to prevent these videos being broadcast.

We have also seen the rise of the demand for trophy pets as people parade lion and tiger cubs online, only to discard them when they become difficult to manage – and ADI then picks up the pieces, as these animals are abandoned.

The social media companies have much to answer for – allowing the growth of an industry of fake rescues, where animals are put in danger, terrified, and then ‘saved’, and now, even created using AI tools. These cruelties and depiction of cruelty encourage cruelty, while also pushing real rescues, like ADI rescues, off the tops of feeds.

We have made huge progress fighting the abuse of animals for entertainment exposing the behind-the-scenes cruelty of circuses and animal trainers for movies. We have gained bans on animal circuses all over the world, driven most live animal use out of the movie industry, and secured prohibitions of cruel bull runs and bullfighting – but social media is a whole new challenge. 

In a world where so much has moved online, we must take that on.

We celebrate a huge victory this week, but we know there is more to do. Will you help us fight back for the animals?  Please donate here UK £, Euros, Rand | US $, CA $