Lion cub brutally tortured, had legs broken so it 'couldn't run away' while posing for photos with tourists
A lion cub's hind legs were intentionally broken by animal abusers so that the lion could pose on Russian beaches with tourists and "could not run away." The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, is believed to be very disturbed and shocked regarding the case so much so that he has ordered a criminal probe into the torture that the lion cub named Simba had endured, Daily Mail reports.
Simba had been only a few weeks old when he had been taken from his mother. He was then forced to pose for pictures with tourists. He was exploited for all of last summer. When he started to grow bigger, Simba's abusers broke his legs to keep him from running away. He was "tortured and beaten" and his health quickly deteriorated. He had severe injuries to his back and spine which had left him very close to death, local reports reveal. The animal was later dumped, starving, and freezing in a dirty old barn in Dagestan, Russia.
A very disturbing video shows the poor and tortured animal before the life-saving surgery and also after. Simba is seen slowly and painfully learning to walk again after the extreme damage to his legs. He is seen licking his paw as he winces in pain while he struggles to clean himself. Yulia Ageeva, the person who led a rescue mission to save Simba, said, "He was practically not fed, and for some reason in the frost water was constantly poured over him."
"This was a real hell." The lion cub was flown to a specialist vet Karen Dallakyanwho revealed that the animal had suffered "an ocean of pain from humans." Dallakyan said, "Evil photographers break bones like this so that wild predators cannot escape and behave calmly for pictures (with tourists)." In Simba's recovery video, the young lion looks to be in a much better condition. He is seen stumbling forward while being encouraged by his rescuers. The cub who has a shaved coat even breaks into a tiny jog as he learns how to use his legs again.
Even though Simba's life has been saved, he has unfortunately been left with some permanent deformities. It is also reported that the lion cub had suffered from pressure sores, intestinal obstructions, and also atrophy of the muscles behind the hind legs, the Daily Star reveals. During a video conference of ecologists with Putin, Dallakyan narrated the incident and the scandal. He also said, "We do not see any criminal case opened." Putin responded saying, "Thank you, I wrote down what you said." He promised to have law enforcement look into the matter and act against the animal abusers and any accomplices.
Dallakyan shared that a criminal investigation into the matter is currently underway. The vet also said that the club's recovery was nothing short of a "miracle." Many social media users were sickened by the news and took to the comments section to express their outrage. One such user shared, "This is absolutely heartbreaking... Why are there not people doing regular checks on the animals or even members of the public reporting what they are seeing this is horrendous... It's pure evil." A second added, "Humans are the virus, they are cruel and evil, not all but there are a lot. Why do this to a lovely animal like this? I just don't understand. I am so glad he is saved."