Massaï and Alakay need you today

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Hello John,

On World Lion Day, I wanted to introduce you to someone in urgent need of your help. Meet 11-year-old lioness Massaï. Your gift today could literally transform her life.

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Massaï (c) Lowie Loyens, Natuurhulpcentrum

She is astonishingly beautiful and appears remarkably calm. But look closer, and her eyes reveal a sad history – they seem weary and resigned. How I long to give her a new lease of life!

HELP MASSAÏ TODAY ([link removed])

I’m Glen, and I’ve worked at Born Free’s Big Cat Sanctuary, in South Africa, for 26 years.

I oversee the long-term care of rescued lions. Like you, I can’t bear the thought of animals suffering. Massaï has endured so much. This is why she needs you today.

Massaï has spent almost her entire life in the circus industry. Cruelly trained, then forced to perform unnatural tricks in front of noisy crowds – music blaring, lights flashing. Her only home a cramped barren trailer, constantly on the road. This was Massaï’s miserable existence, exploited at a circus in France.

It’s heart-breaking to think how much she endured, robbed of everything her wild spirit yearned for. We knew we had to help. So now, she needs YOU!

PLEASE DONATE NOW ([link removed])

Sadly, Massaï isn’t the only lion in need of a home.

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Alakay (c) Stefano Bigiani

Alakay, a mighty, eight-year-old male lion, has also spent his life in captivity, born in a zoo in Switzerland.

Our sanctuary gives a home to lions (and leopards!) in need. Most have known terrible suffering, rescued from appalling situations. But our sanctuary is a haven. The cats transform, as they embrace tranquillity and privacy.

Here, Massaï and Alakay would be free to enjoy their bush enclosures – with space to run, trees to scratch, bushes to relax under, undergrowth to explore. A world away from their former lives. Please, help give them this chance.

HELP BRING MASSAÏ & ALAKAY HOME ([link removed])

Thanks to the incredible Olsen Animal Trust, Alakay’s lifetime care at Shamwari will be supported – but we urgently need to raise funds to help cover transport and logistics costs to get both lions to Shamwari, and provide lifetime care for Massaï.

Your gift today could mean they both enjoy an enriched life, where they belong – here in Africa.

GIVE A GIFT TODAY ([link removed])

Every donation helps – just £25 could pay for a day’s care for one lion! So please, give what you can and help us bring these lions home.

Warm thanks, on behalf of all your friends at Born Free.

Glen Vena

Animal Care Manager
Born Free’s Big Cat Sanctuary, South Africa

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Images © Action Protection Animale, Lowie Loyens, Natuurhulpcentrum, Lyndon Brandt, Stefano Bigiani

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© 2026 - Born Free Foundation
2nd Floor, Frazer House, 14 Carfax
Horsham, West Sussex, RH12 1ER

The Born Free Foundation is a registered charity. (Charity Number: 1070906). Registered as a company limited by guarantee (Number 03603432) (England & Wales).

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