There is a world somewhere between reality and fiction. Although ignored by many, it is very real and so are those living in it. This forum is about the natural world. Here, wild animals will be heard and respected. The forum offers a glimpse into an unknown world as well as a room with a view on the present and the future. Anyone able to speak on behalf of those living in the emerald forest and the deep blue sea is invited to join.
(12-08-2022, 10:27 PM)Charger01 Wrote: What the YouTube channel owner says is that the weight was 300 kg+ but the vet estimated him 265 kg empty. He must have had a huge meal before being weighed. But I still have my doubts, after discussing with other people.
I got into contact with two officials from Welgevonden.
1. Conservation manager
2. Bio-monitoring manager
I would still like to talk to the actual vet before dismissing anything.
These seem pretty clear but regardless this claim should be dismissed simply from what the program is about and how it operates. It's not a free ranging cat and obviously severely over fed.
Dinokeng doesnt look in any way fat to me and he is also doing his own thing in his reserve so i cant understand why he is not free-ranging. He just had recently a fight and levt injure. Or i understand something wrong.
He’s not free ranging because he’s from a private reserve that also utilizes a pay to play vet program. We’ve seen this at other private reserves too, these are considered “semi wild” cats. Baiting, capturing, selective breeding, prey restocking, artificial watering holes, etc. These cats don’t suffer from natural challenges, they don’t deal with true competition or prey migration. It’s not what a true wild cat deals with and thus should never be put in the same category.
In regards to his body condition, I can’t help you if you don’t think he’s overweight. I assume that probably has more to do with your personal preference than being practical about it. He is extremely overweight and infact if you look through almost all of GAP’s lion captures, they all look to be overweight which is a tendency for these programs since the cats are unnecessarily captured using baits.