Let's be more humane to animals!
Find out more why and how we help animals
We care for more than 50 rescued animals
The zoo is open almost throughout the year
Take a look at what it looks like here and what beautiful creatures we have here
Find out more about our trustees
Every week we prepare a great program for you
We won't let you down, we have a great offer
We think of everything and even the little ones!
Our first rescued lioness Malkia gave the name and meaning to the whole project. Malkia means queen in Swahili. She was born in captivity to the previous owner’s lion parents, Leo and Elza. However, the mother rejected her and was condemned to the help of man. Although she was born with a broken tail, it certainly didn’t take away from her beauty and charm. In the wild, she might not survive with this handicap. As a cub she grew up with a golden retriever until Adelle, her younger sister, arrived and she lived happily in the same enclosure. Adelle left us forever on 2.3.2021. At the beginning of 2023 we managed to get Malkia together with a male Alex.
When keeping felines in human care, the general principle is that the older the animals get, the more difficult it can be to form a harmonious pair. It may seem that our animals are still young, but it should be remembered that in the wild lions this old are already in the last stage of their lives. The maximum age of a lion in the wild is around 10 years.
Lions are not solitary animals, so we didn’t want to leave Malkia alone either. We decided to create a new lion pair. We had three applicants (Kevin, Alex, Diego) for the next partner for Malkia. We gradually introduced her to each one through the bars and watched carefully the reactions of both animals. We noticed that the biggest spark jumped between Malkia and Alex. We started a longer process of introductions, we “housed” the animals next to each other, so they took turns in the enclosure, they could see each other, smell each other, but they couldn’t get to each other through the double mesh. We waited for Malkia to come into estrus, when the female is more friendly to the male, and on D-day we let the animals go to each other. Of course, lions are not romantics, so the first contact was not without theatrics and “teasing”, but in the end everything worked out well and the animals agreed on common rules.
However, we will not see any offspring, all our big felines are neutered because our breeding is not focused on producing offspring. Nevertheless, we believe that the creation of this pair was meaningful for both animals, who will have many nice moments in the future!
THANK YOU for the adoption contribution to Malkia:
Victoria Mykyta.
The lion is distinguished from other felids by its short, close-fitting, sand-coloured coat and the end of its tail, where it has long, darker fur. Already at first glance, sexual dimorphism, i.e. a marked difference between male and female, is visible. The male has a thick mane covering his head and neck. The colour and density of the mane inform about the age and health of the lion. Young males have a mostly light brown mane that darkens over time. Old males can be recognized by their very dark, almost black mane. The mane also has a vital function – when two males fight over females and territory, the males strike each other with their clawed paws in the head and neck area. The thicker the mane, the better it protects the lion and gives it a better chance of surviving without injury – it acts as a protective helmet.
Unlike other felids, lions are very social and territorial creatures. Even if they don’t spend all their time together, they share territory and are friendly to each other. A clamp is most often made up of 20 to 30 individuals. In some packs there is only one dominant male, in some there may be up to four.
Males protect the territory and females and prevent other males from mating with them. The lion marks its territory by the smell of droppings, urine and a strong roar, which it uses to warn off potential rivals. Both females and males mark a common territory – the female to secure food and the male to secure his genetic material.
The size of a lion’s territory depends both on the size of the group and the amount of prey on which the lions feed. It usually covers 12 to 25 km2.
As the young males mature, they leave their family, group together and try to find their own pack, females and territory.
But this is preceded by serious fights with dominant males.
Mostly females hunt in groups with young lions – in so-called coordinated hunting they have a better chance of catching their prey. The prey are always weak, sick or old individuals, thus the beasts perform a healing function in nature. They go hunting at dusk, preferring to spend the hot days in the shade. The male eats the catch first, then the female and the young.
If there is a lack of food, the chicks are the first to die.
They do not pursue their prey for long. But when they run they develop a speed of 48 to 60 km/h. There have also been sightings of lions burrowing and hunting pigs.
When a lioness is pregnant, she leaves the group and finds a hiding place where she gives birth. A lioness nursing cubs needs to consume up to 6 kg of meat per day. When a lioness brings her cubs into a group, the other lions take them in.
The largest known lion ever recorded was a male and weighed a whopping 272 kg. This “giant” originated in Kenya.
Lions can open their jaws up to 28 cm wide.
They have great hearing. They can hear their prey at a distance of up to 1.6 km.
Hunting efficiency is increased by hunting in groups. According to research in the Serengeti, lions as individuals have a 17% hunting success rate, while in groups it is 30%.
If the original dominant male loses the duel and is replaced by a new male, the newly fought king kills all the cubs that are suckled.
Grown young and young females are not noticed. The lionesses that stop nursing go back into heat, the new male mates them and takes care of his offspring – at the same time new genetic material is introduced into the group and inbreeding is prevented.
Our first rescued lioness Malkia gave the name and meaning to the whole project. Malkia means queen in Swahili. She was born in captivity to the previous owner’s lion parents, Leo and Elza. However, the mother rejected her and was condemned to the help of man. Although she was born with a broken tail, it certainly didn’t take away from her beauty and charm. In the wild, she might not survive with this handicap. As a cub she grew up with a golden retriever until Adelle, her younger sister, arrived and she lived happily in the same enclosure. Adelle left us forever on 2.3.2021. At the beginning of 2023 we managed to get Malkia together with a male Alex.
When keeping felines in human care, the general principle is that the older the animals get, the more difficult it can be to form a harmonious pair. It may seem that our animals are still young, but it should be remembered that in the wild lions this old are already in the last stage of their lives. The maximum age of a lion in the wild is around 10 years.
Lions are not solitary animals, so we didn’t want to leave Malkia alone either. We decided to create a new lion pair. We had three applicants (Kevin, Alex, Diego) for the next partner for Malkia. We gradually introduced her to each one through the bars and watched carefully the reactions of both animals. We noticed that the biggest spark jumped between Malkia and Alex. We started a longer process of introductions, we “housed” the animals next to each other, so they took turns in the enclosure, they could see each other, smell each other, but they couldn’t get to each other through the double mesh. We waited for Malkia to come into estrus, when the female is more friendly to the male, and on D-day we let the animals go to each other. Of course, lions are not romantics, so the first contact was not without theatrics and “teasing”, but in the end everything worked out well and the animals agreed on common rules.
However, we will not see any offspring, all our big felines are neutered because our breeding is not focused on producing offspring. Nevertheless, we believe that the creation of this pair was meaningful for both animals, who will have many nice moments in the future!
THANK YOU for the adoption contribution to Malkia:
Victoria Mykyta.
The lion is distinguished from other felids by its short, close-fitting, sand-coloured coat and the end of its tail, where it has long, darker fur. Already at first glance, sexual dimorphism, i.e. a marked difference between male and female, is visible. The male has a thick mane covering his head and neck. The colour and density of the mane inform about the age and health of the lion. Young males have a mostly light brown mane that darkens over time. Old males can be recognized by their very dark, almost black mane. The mane also has a vital function – when two males fight over females and territory, the males strike each other with their clawed paws in the head and neck area. The thicker the mane, the better it protects the lion and gives it a better chance of surviving without injury – it acts as a protective helmet.
Unlike other felids, lions are very social and territorial creatures. Even if they don’t spend all their time together, they share territory and are friendly to each other. A clamp is most often made up of 20 to 30 individuals. In some packs there is only one dominant male, in some there may be up to four.
Males protect the territory and females and prevent other males from mating with them. The lion marks its territory by the smell of droppings, urine and a strong roar, which it uses to warn off potential rivals. Both females and males mark a common territory – the female to secure food and the male to secure his genetic material.
The size of a lion’s territory depends both on the size of the group and the amount of prey on which the lions feed. It usually covers 12 to 25 km2.
As the young males mature, they leave their family, group together and try to find their own pack, females and territory.
But this is preceded by serious fights with dominant males.
Mostly females hunt in groups with young lions – in so-called coordinated hunting they have a better chance of catching their prey. The prey are always weak, sick or old individuals, thus the beasts perform a healing function in nature. They go hunting at dusk, preferring to spend the hot days in the shade. The male eats the catch first, then the female and the young.
If there is a lack of food, the chicks are the first to die.
They do not pursue their prey for long. But when they run they develop a speed of 48 to 60 km/h. There have also been sightings of lions burrowing and hunting pigs.
When a lioness is pregnant, she leaves the group and finds a hiding place where she gives birth. A lioness nursing cubs needs to consume up to 6 kg of meat per day. When a lioness brings her cubs into a group, the other lions take them in.
The largest known lion ever recorded was a male and weighed a whopping 272 kg. This “giant” originated in Kenya.
Lions can open their jaws up to 28 cm wide.
They have great hearing. They can hear their prey at a distance of up to 1.6 km.
Hunting efficiency is increased by hunting in groups. According to research in the Serengeti, lions as individuals have a 17% hunting success rate, while in groups it is 30%.
If the original dominant male loses the duel and is replaced by a new male, the newly fought king kills all the cubs that are suckled.
Grown young and young females are not noticed. The lionesses that stop nursing go back into heat, the new male mates them and takes care of his offspring – at the same time new genetic material is introduced into the group and inbreeding is prevented.