Canned hunting consists of hunting lions borned in captivity in a small fenced area. This practice is common in South Africa.

In fact, there are about 200 farms and breeding facilities with 6000 to 8000 predators, most of them lions. The trade does not stop there. The lion cubs are also a source of profit since the tourists have the possibility of cuddle them, bottle-feeding them, etc. in “sanctuaries” presenting them as orphans. Of course, visitors never think that it is only a business, convinced that the lions will be released in the wild once adults.

About 800 lions bred in captivity are killed each year in South Africa by trophy hunters. South Africa is also the largest legal exporter of bones and lion skeletons. From 2008 to 2015, the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) issued export permits for the export of more than 5,363 skeletons of lions. 98% of them were destined to Laos and Vietnam, which are known centers for illegal wildlife trafficking.

Believing that lions are sentient beings endowed with intelligence, that it is more than cowardly to attack an animal whose abilities have been reduced by drugs with a precision weapon, that this practice encourages Asian countries in their consumption of wild animals and considering the cruelty of this act, we, Wildlife Revolution asbl, ask the South African Government to prohibit this despicable practice. Support us by signing this petition.

It should also be known that the lion receives only a small protection in South Africa because lions intended for “canned hunting” are counted in the censuses. In fact, there are very few lions left in the wild.