Born Free

Just across the road from the entrance to the Amakhala Safari Lodge is the Born Free Foundation, which is set within the Shamwari game reserve. It was set up in partnership with the actress Virginia McKenna, who starred in the celebrated film of the same name 50 years ago. The foundation's mission is to draw the public's attention to the plight of animals living in poor conditions in captivity and provide awareness and education for a more humane and compassionate approach.

The Born Free Foundation at Shamwari has been set up in memory of Julie Ward, who was murdered at the age of 28 when she was on a safari holiday at the Masai Mara game reserve in Kenya in 1988. The Kenyan authorities first claimed that she had been attacked by a lion, but her dismembered, burnt body indicated that she had been attacked by a machete. She was a keen photographer and the theory is that she may have seen something she shouldn't have done - possibly poaching - through her lens. Her father has been fighting to bring her killers to justice since then and even today, after three murder trials, no one has been convicted. Her parents wanted to do something in her memory and approached Shamwari when they were setting up the Born Free Foundation on their reserve.

The sanctuary today is home to five lions and five leopards. One of the lions - Sinbad - used to be a beach photographer's prop for people who wanted to have a photo of themselves cuddling a lion cub. He then went on to live in a Romanian zoo where he lived in a small cage for six years, mainly alone. He was fed a poor diet - including spaghetti - and didn't grow to full size because of nutritional deficiencies. He is about half the size of a normal lion and has no experience of hunting, so could never survive in the wild. Most of his front teeth have rotted away and he has to have his meat cut up into thin strips so he can chew it with his back teeth - some of which have fillings.

Two of the leopards were formally owned by Prince Ranier of Monaco, and his wife Grace Kelly. They started life as circus animals before being transferred to live in the Prince's private zoo for ten years. For many years, Virginia McKenna tried to persuade the Prince to close his zoo without success. But his son, Prince Albert, who is a keen environmentalist, relented and the leopards were re-homed at the Born Free Foundation in Shamwari in 2008. Our guide told us of the time when the leopards arrived and he met Prince Albert. He wasn't allowed to stand close to him and the prince's security guards were not keen on him having a pistol to hand, which is part of his standard equipment for the job. He told us that his pistol was a much higher calibre than theirs and in the event of an attack by one of the animals, he was considerably more experienced to be able to handle it.

It was a very interesting visit. The guide was clearly passionate about his job and very attached to his charges, calling them by their names to get them to come. The leopards obliged with an appearance, but the lions did not. Why am I not surprised..

Love this sign..