FREE RUBEN: 15-year old 'silent' lion who lived in isolation for 5 years is FINALLY rescued
YEREVAN, ARMENIA: Ruben the lion, who roared in silence for five years, has been set free at last. The 15-year-old animal was the last animal left in a closed zoo and had been kept in isolation in a small cage for the last five years. The experience was so traumatic that he became quiet and withdrawn. However, with the assistance of the British animal charity that saved him, Ruben will be rehomed in the wilds and hopefully will learn how to roar again.
According to Jan Creamer of Animal Defenders International, a Russian tycoon once controlled the zoo on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. All of the other animals were saved after he died. "Sadly, there was no room for Ruben," she said. "Lions live in family groups and roaring is chatting to them. He is still trying to roar. Ruben has never felt the sun on his back or the wind in his face."
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His rescuers are hoping that he will soon find a home at a sanctuary in South Africa. To prevent escalating tensions in the area, which have already been heightened by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the rescue mission had to be carefully organized in secrecy. The family of the former oligarch approved of the relocation despite having to pass through numerous armed checkpoints because they wanted Ruben to have a better life.
Ruben traveled nine hours to safety to a former bear refuge outside of Yerevan while being drugged and cared for by a veterinarian. He will shortly be transported to an ADI refuge for lions and tigers in South Africa, as per Daily Mail.
Ruben was born in captivity at the zoo. This has left him with health problems as a result of the years he spent alone and with insufficient food. But as he becomes used to a healthy diet, a hay bed, two warm chambers, and a 30 by 15-foot enclosure, his coat, which was once matted with filth and moulting, is regaining its sheen.
"This is more space than he has ever known but the real transformation will be in Africa where he will eventually have access to 2.5 acres of natural habitat," Ms Creamer said. "His life-long restrictions have weakened his muscles and there appears to be neurological damage to his spine and head and one leg is wobbly and drags. But we are building him up with exercise and food and he is responding well...Ruben is now engaging and interacting with people which is wonderful to see. His calls went unanswered for five years but we are confident that he will roar again."