Your data on MRCVSonline
The nature of the services provided by Vision Media means that we might obtain certain information about you.
Please read our Data Protection and Privacy Policy for details.

In addition, (with your consent) some parts of our website may store a 'cookie' in your browser for the purposes of
functionality or performance monitoring.
Click here to manage your settings.
EmailIphone Application    Posted: 28th October 2014
If you would like to forward this story on to a friend, simply fill in the form below and click send.
Your friend's email:
Your email:
Your name:
 
 
Send Cancel

'Iconic' lioness rescued from captivity
Elsa behind bars
Elsa was rescued from Circus Martin in Sardinia.

Elsa was facing a lifetime of misery behind bars

A lioness, who shares her name with the iconic lioness in the classic film 'Born Free',  has been rescued from a ramshackle circus in Sardinia, the international wildlife charity The Born Free Foundation and Italian animal welfare organisation LAV have announced.

Believed to be around six years old, Elsa is in relatively good health despite the terrible conditions that she was living in. She is currently being relocated from Circus Martin, to a spacious temporary sanctuary in Tuscany, where she will stay until she can be permanently re-homed at Born Free's Big Cat Rescue Centre in South Africa.

Born Free's Daniel Turner, senior programmes manager for Zoo Check, said: "When I walked up to the barren enclosure, which was essentially just a circle of iron bars within a concrete car park, I was struck by the inadequacy of the dismal conditions this lioness was living in. When told that she was called Elsa - 'like in the film Born Free' - I quite literally had a shiver down my spine, especially as this year marks 30 years since the Foundation was established."

Born Free's founder, actress and conservationist, Virginia McKenna OBE said: "When I heard about this lioness victim called Elsa, for a moment my world rocked. I was suffused with bitter-sweet memories. Fifty years ago my beloved husband Bill and I had flown to Kenya to make the film 'Born Free', the true story of Elsa the lioness's journey to freedom which inspired a generation and changed our lives forever."

"It was back in 1984, that Bill and I began Zoo Check with our son will. The charity evolved into the Born Free Foundation, with the iconic 'Elsa' as its symbol, and so in the year of our 30th anniversary, what could be more poignant, more momentous, than rescuing this new Elsa from her life of misery and suffering? Giving her the proper home she deserves."

Elsa cannot be returned to the wild as she would not be able to survive on her own, but will remain in Tuscany for up to a year, pending the ongoing court case, before she is ready to make the long journey 'home' to Africa.

Once she has arrived at the Born Free Foundation's rescue centre near Port Elizabeth, she will enjoy a spacious enclose, surrounded by the sights and sounds of wild Africa.

The Born Free Foundation has set up an urgent appeal for Elsa. To make a donation, please visit www.bornfree.org.uk.

Image (C) Born Free Foundation

Become a member or log in to add this story to your CPD history

Cold-water dip to raise funds for Vetlife

News Story 1
 The veterinary mental health charity Vetlife is inviting the veterinary community to join it for a sponsored cold-water dip.

The event will take place at Walpole Bay, Margate, on 17 May during Mental Health Awareness Week. Participants of all abilities can join in the challenge and are advised to bring a towel, a hot drink, a snack, and warm clothes to get changed into afterwards.

Those taking part are being asked to try to raise £100 each to support the work of the charity.

Details about how to take part can be found here. 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
Bluetongue low vector period ends

In an update to its bluetongue guidance, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has announced that the seasonal low vector period for the disease has ended.

With winter over, Defra is planning for a possible increase in cases as midges become more active. It has warned that farms along the east coast of England from Norfolk to Kent, and along the south coast from Kent to Devon, are at highest risk from infected midges blown over from northern Europe.

Since the virus was detected in England in November 2023, there have been 126 confirmed cases. The most recent case to be confirmed was on 1 March 2024.

Farmers are asked to continue to frequently monitor their livestock and ensure their animals and land are registered with the Animal and Plant Health Agency.