The fate of two lion cubs liberated from Bulgaria’ squalid illegal zoo touched the hearts of thousands of people around the world, expecting the swift transfer of Masoud and Terez to an appropriate rescue centre. The story had a dramatic twist when the mayor of Razgrad and the city councilors decided to act as owners of the cubs and send them to another zoo in Bulgaria. Government officials have since been blocking all efforts to bring the two cubs and the 3-year-old lion Ivan-Asen – rescued from Razgrad – to FELIDA big cats rescue centre, our sanctuary in the Netherlands.

In September 2017 three inbred cubs were born in an illegal zoo of Razgrad. Just hours after that their mother rejected them and trampled them over. The owner of the zoo, Municipality of the city of Razgrad took no action to help the cubs, who were about to be just another number in the list of dead animals in the squalid animal jail, but the newborns were rescued by local activists and veterinarians. Miraculously, two of the cubs – Masoud and Terez – survived and were transported to the capital Sofia, and are currently taken care of by two animal welfare organizations – Wild Animals and FOUR PAWS.

The animal lovers and activists assemble their ranks to pressure the authorities into releasing the permits for survival cubs transfer to animal sanctuaries, where animals can enjoy conditions close to their habitat.  They insist on providing a species-appropriate home and adequate medical care for Masoud, Terez and Ivan-Asen by appealing  to the Prime Minister of Bulgaria Boyko Borissov and relevant ministers of his cabinet.