The Lahore Safari Park has sold fourteen lions because lack of funds and resources has made it impossible for the park’s management to arrange food for the animals and birds housed there. The park was already facing financial issues before the lockdown was implemented but after that, their problems seem to have increased.
According to a report in The Express Tribune, the lions were sold because there were a large number of them in the park and taking care of their diet and other needs is not an easy task. The management said that caring for these animals costs millions of rupees and 90 percent of their budget. Officials said a lion is given eight to nine kilogrammes of meat and few litres of milk every day. The daily cost of the lions’ food is about Rs30,000, which amounts to about Rs900,000 per month and Rs10.8 million annually.
There are 37 African breed lions and lionesses and five tigers, including a white tiger, two jaguars and two pumas in the Safari Park.
It was further reported that seven African lions and seven African lionesses were sold for Rs2.1 million through an auction. Each lion was sold for approximately Rs 150,000 and they were only handed over to the buyers after all the legal obligations had been fulfilled. They have been sold to breeders who have registered with the wildlife department and have facilities for keeping lions.
Out of the 14 lions sold, 12 had minor issues related to breeding. According to Punjab Wildlife Director Mohammad Naeem Bhatti, 12 of the lions sold were suffering from partial disability.
“Someone had problems with paws and others with bones,” he said, adding that the administration was forced to sell them due to disabilities and lack of resources.