What Happened To The Rescued Lions at Yorkshire Wildlife Park?

Imagine being young, scared, and in a completely new place. That’s exactly what a trio of young lions have been going through. But the good news, announced on December 11, 2025, is that they’ve just been given a clean bill of health at their new home, the award-winning Yorkshire Wildlife Park. This special pride, made up of a lion named Oleg and siblings Rafael and Shanti, has a heart-breaking backstory. They were rescued from war-torn Ukraine and brought to Yorkshire for a chance at a proper life. It’s been a big adjustment, but these resilient young lions are finally starting to feel at home.

Photos: Yorkshire Wildlife Park/Dominic Lipinski

A new start for three young lions

Arriving at a new place is always a bit strange, and for this trio of rescued lions, it was a massive change. They had to get used to a whole new world at the park, from the peaceful surroundings of Lion Country to the different sounds and smells. Their journey here wasn't easy. Oleg was rescued as a cub from private owners who fled during the war. He was raised by people and was desperate to be around other lions. The siblings, Rafael and Shanti, have an even more tragic tale; they were found in the Kharkiv region next to their mother, who had been left to starve in a private collection. Without this rescue, their future was bleak.

The Wildlife Foundation, a charity based at the park, managed to raise the money to transport the young pride over 1,700 miles to safety in Yorkshire. Now, the team at the wildlife park is focused on helping them settle in.

Bex Brown, the Head of Carnivores, said,

“The team has been working closely with the lions to build up their confidence and settle them in.”

“Training them helps build confidence too, from just taking a piece of meat from tongs that we feed them, up to being able to examine and even inject them by hand, all helps provide the foundation for better care.”

This careful training would soon prove to be incredibly important for the lions' health.

Time for a check-up with the vets

Just like people need a check-up, so do animals, especially young ones with a tough past. The two boys, Oleg and Rafael, were getting to an age where they could start a family. To manage the lion population carefully, the vets recommended they have a vasectomy. A vasectomy is a simple, permanent operation that stops males from being able to have babies. It’s a common and safe procedure in wildlife conservation. This planned operation was the perfect chance to give the whole trio a full 'MOT' – a top-to-toe health check.

Specialist vets from the International Zoo Veterinary Group came to the wildlife park to assess the whole pride. Thanks to the brilliant training from the keepers, what could have been a stressful experience was made much calmer. Oleg was the first to be examined. Instead of using a tranquilliser dart, which can be alarming for an animal, the team’s hard work paid off. He calmly came over to the vets, who gave him an injection through the mesh of his enclosure. Soon, he was fast asleep and ready to be carefully examined by the expert vets.

What does a lion MOT involve?

Once Oleg was safely asleep, he was carried on a stretcher to a nearby den that had been turned into a temporary operating theatre for the day. The vets got straight to work. Giving a lion a full health check is a big job and involves a lot of different steps. The team:

• Took blood samples to check his general health, how his organs were working, and even his genetics.
• Carefully examined and photographed his teeth – a bit like a trip to the dentist!
• Checked all his joints and bones to make sure they were growing properly.
• Took X-rays to get a look at what was going on inside.

Bex explained why the X-rays were so important for these rescued lions.

‘Sometimes these young lions can look as if their legs are slightly bowed as they have a growth spurt and it can be something they grow out of, or it can be because of a vitamin or sunlight deficiency when they were younger. We have seen this previously with our rescue lions.'

'We would hope that their good diet here, exercise out in the big reserves and sunshine would make a big difference and lack of straightness will correct itself naturally.’

After Oleg's thorough check, it was Rafael and Shanti's turn. Both Oleg and his pal Rafael also had their vasectomy procedure. It was a long day, but the outcome was fantastic for the lions and their health.

From cowering in a corner to playing hide and seek

The health check was a huge success. Bex concluded, ‘It was a long day for us but as stress free as possible for the lions and the results are looking good which is great news for everyone. They all came round really well and were soon back to their normal selves.’ But the good news doesn't stop there. The progress this trio has made since arriving is simply amazing. When they first got to the park, their past trauma was obvious.

“When they first arrived about three months ago, Oleg was shut down, hiding away in the corner of the lion house alone.”

“Whenever they saw an aeroplane or helicopter, they would go back into the house and cower down.”

“Now the three have been transformed, even playing hide and seek together and snuggling up together at night. The boys have also developed a real ‘bromance’!”

“They have enrichment here; they have balls and tubes, and we hide their food.”

“It’s incredible to think what we can offer them and what we can do to improve their lives.”

A history of helping lions in need

This incredible rescue mission is the third of its kind for Yorkshire Wildlife Park, which has now brought a total of 17 rescued lions to its specially designed Lion Country habitat over the years. The first rescue was back in 2010, saving 13 lions from awful conditions in Romania. That mission put the park on the map for its incredible wildlife conservation work. A second rescue in 2024 brought Aysa and her cubs to Yorkshire. Now, Oleg, Rafael, and Shanti continue that legacy.

Once this trio is fully recovered, visitors to the park will be able to see them exploring their seven-acre habitat. The park’s commitment to conservation shines through in the amazing experience it offers visitors, allowing them to see some of the world's most beautiful and rare species up close. The journey for this young pride of lions has been long, but their future is finally looking bright. This rescue gives them a safe home where they can grow, play, and just be lions, all thanks to the dedicated team and the park's focus on protecting wildlife.