Dorine Reinstein
One year after the South African Lion and Safari Park in Johannesburg banned its controversial cub-petting activity, the park is once again allowing tourists to interact with its cubs.
The Lion and Safari Park is not the only facility offering this activity, with parks across South Africa allowing travelers to pet lion cubs. However, it is believed that when the lions grow older, they risk ending up in small enclosures where they'll be shot by trophy hunters.
So, why did the Lion and Safari Park in Johannesburg reintroduce the questionable activity? "We are not competing on a level playing field, and unless our competitors also stop the cub interaction, the survival of our business will be at stake," CEO Rodney Fuhrsaid said in a statement.
Although Fuhrsaid said he had "no choice" but to reintroduce cub interaction, animal rights activists are having none of it. Paul Tully, sales and marketing manager Captured in Africa, told Travel Weekly: "Petting lion or tiger cubs, walking with lions or cheetahs and riding elephants are for one thing only and that's profiteering."
Tully explained that when the Lion Park in Johannesburg announced in 2015 that it was to cease lion cub petting, it wasn't due to them suddenly realizing it was unethical. "They put it down to public backlash following protests against them."
He adds that when Lion Park recently opened its new park, they continued with lion cub petting, citing a drop in profits as the reason, not the welfare of their animals. "Why do people visit these places if they don't care for their animals, and why does South Africa's Tourism department allow it?"
Tully remarks that the petting industry in places like South Africa, Asia the U.S. and even in places in South America and Australia are based on supply and demand. "Sadly, that demand is petting cute, adorable cubs and other animals such as elephants and dolphins. The travelers' thoughts don't go far enough to wonder why they are given this opportunity to touch an animal they should never be touching in the first place."
Fairtrade Travel managing director Nivashnee Naidoo has a harsh view of the practice. "By selling lion cub interactions or 'walking with lions' experiences, tour operators are contributing to a conveyor belt of abuse and exploitation. By buying these activities, tourists are doing the same."
The key to stopping operations like these from carrying on with such unethical programs is educating inbound/outbound tour operators to stop selling them by giving them the very valid reasons why they should withdraw their support, said Sharon Gilbert-Rivett, marketing manager for Fairtrade Travel.
And according to Fairtrade, those valid reasons are the fact that hand-reared lions cannot be rehabilitated into the wild as they become human-imprinted. They often start their lives on predator breeding farms that masquerade as sanctuaries, and most of them end their lives in canned hunting operations.
According to Gilbert-Rivett, "The key element we have tried to focus on is authenticity. Is the wildlife experience a visitor to South Africa or, indeed, Africa, a proper representation of everything which makes Africa so special and such a key tourism destination? Is it, if you like, "true" to Africa and the spirit of the continent? Personally, I find it very sad that visitors to Africa are offered watered-down versions of what Africa has to offer, often at a cost which is exponentially more than truly authentic experiences."
Africa has a great number of authentic and ethical wildlife experiences, where no animals will be hurt:
A walk through the wilderness
Gilbert-Rivett explains that a walk through the wilderness offered at Leshiba, high in the Soutpansberg in Limpopo in South Africa, offers travelers the chance to see rhino and other wildlife in authentic surroundings at a fraction of the cost of mainstream, high-end lodges.
Wilderness Safaris' Tarryn Gibson agreed.
"In my mind, nothing beats experiencing the bush on foot you really get the opportunity to appreciate the small creatures as well as realizing your space in the world," Gibson said.
For the kids
According to Gilbert-Rivett, Umlani and Motswari in the Timbavati in South Africa are great, child-friendly safari destinations that take care to instill the wonder of wild Africa to entire families.
Wilderness Safaris also has the Bush Buddy program. Entertaining activities led by Wilderness Safaris guides subtly encourage children to learn about and fall in love with the wildlife and natural environment around them. Each family-friendly camp offers different activities suited to its own particular environment; for example, water activities characterize the wetter regions in the Okavango Delta of Botswana, while land activities mostly take place around Wilderness Safaris camps in Namibia.
Not all wildlife sanctuaries are bad
Certified wildlife sanctuaries Monkeyland, Jukani and Birds of Eden offer the opportunity for visitors to contribute to the care of previously abused, rescued and genuinely orphaned or distressed wildlife, said Gilbert-Rivett. The South African Animal Sanctuary Alliance is a great source of information on bona fide sanctuaries doing great work in helping to care for abandoned animals and rehabilitation of wild animals back into the wild.
Rhino-tracking
Rhino-tracking experiences can be a great way to experience the thrill of the authentic bush while contributing and helping legitimate research projects. However, Gilbert-Rivett warned that these experiences need to be carefully sourced with an eye on the bona fides and the right questions asked to ensure complete authenticity.
Henk Graaff, managing director of SW Africa Destination Management, agreed, saying that sustainable conservation demands careful management of wilderness areas to ensure that the correct balance in the environment is maintained and to ensure the survival of endangered and all other species for generations to come. Said Graaff: "Participants can track the animal on foot or by 4x4."
Track the big cats
The Africat Foundation also in Namibia, based at Okonjima, is a fascinating experience for travelers to track big cats and visit the Africat center to learn about the group's important conservation work with big cats and other carnivores.
Captured in Africa recently created the Big Cat Route. This eight-day tour visits both ethical captive big cat sanctuaries and responsible wild areas to fully enjoy a safari in the truest form. The tour enables visitors to learn about issues involving big cats in captivity at an ethical and genuine sanctuary as well as the negative aspect of cub petting and its links to canned hunting before they are taken to a wild reserve to learn about big cats in the wild.
There are ample options for travelers wanting to experience a unique wildlife experience. However, Captured in Africa's Tully warned: "If a facility is offering cub petting or interactions with endangered species then please trust us when we say to avoid these places. Hands-off."