Today, Lionhearts is heartbroken to announce the peaceful passing of Abdullah at 1.11pm - a 20-year-old Barbary x African lion, and one of the most magnificent souls New Zealand has ever had the privilege of knowing.

His name, Abdullah, comes from the Arabic meaning servant of God. It suited him perfectly.

A Lion Like No Other

Abdullah was a big, beautiful male - son of the late Gandor and Shikira, brother to Cleo. A rare Barbary x African cross, in a world where Barbary lions no longer exist in the wild. There was no other lion quite like him.

Unlike other lions, Barbary males carry a famously dark, full mane that extended well beyond the head and neck, cascading over the shoulders and down the belly, a feature as rare as the animal itself. A hallmark of our beautiful Abdullah.

He was curious. He was calm. He was regal in the way that only a lion can be - unhurried, present, utterly sure of himself. And he was friendly, in a way that caught you off guard, that made you stop and just look at him. People who met Abdullah didn't forget him.

He was, by every account, divine.

Shikira, Cleo, Timba, and Themba will miss calling out to their son, brother and buddy.

His Last Season

Abdullah and four other lions were facing euthanasia when the land they called home was put up for sale. Private investors stepped in and secured the land, and Lionhearts was formed - a dedicated group committed to managing the sanctuary and protecting these five lions for the rest of their natural lives. New Zealanders rallied behind them, funding vet care, food, and staffing through Givealittle.

What the team found when they arrived was deeply troubling. Abdullah had been diagnosed years earlier with a severely inflamed airway from feline asthma. For the past few years, he did not receive the care and medication he needed. For years, without complaint, this calm and curious lion had been struggling just to breathe.

Lionhearts introduced treatment immediately and fought hard to turn the tide. But the damage ran too deep.

"We've tried to help him. He knows he's loved and he's safe," said Carolyn Press-McKenzie, CEO of HUHA and Trustee of Lionhearts. "Our motto is quality of life, quality of death. We've tried everything we could for Abdullah - he knows he's loved and he's safe. Sometimes the most loving thing we can do is give them peace. That's what we're giving him today."

In his final months, Abdullah was fed well, given medicine, and surrounded by people who finally saw him for what he had always been. He knew he was safe. He knew he was loved.

His Legacy

Abdullah was born on 31 January 2006. He spent twenty years on this earth, most of them in circumstances no animal should endure. But he met every day with grace - curious, calm, and open to the world around him.

That grace is his legacy.

Lionhearts carries it forward - continuing to care for Shikira, Cleo, Timba and Themba, the other lions at the sanctuary, and raising their voices for legislative change to end private exotic animal ownership in New Zealand. There is no need for animals like these to be born in captivity and no animal should arrive at the end of their life having been failed by the people responsible for them.

Abdullah deserved better. So do all the animals who come after him.

Support the Lions

The ongoing care of our four lions relies entirely on public generosity. If you’d like to make a donation in Abduallah’s memory, you can do that via Givealittle.

Visit the Lionhearts Givealittle page or text with the word LIONS to 4463.

https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/lions-join-the-lionhearts

"Animals don't get a choice on the life they have. It's totally in our hands." - Carolyn Press-McKenzie, CEO of HUHA | Trustee, Lionhearts

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