As these incredible images demonstrate, it’s not just people that are grappling with the strain of unexpected additional childcare at the moment.
When Singa, an African lion, was abroad, his group of five unruly youngsters proved to be more than a handful – or should that be pawful?
His parenting abilities were not up to the duty of caring for his small brood at Pakawi Park Zoo in Belgium while their mother, JJ, was undergoing medical treatment, despite his best efforts.
Singa, an African lion that lives in Belgium’s Pakawi Park Zoo, struggled to care for his five pups while his mother was healing from an injury sustained by another lioness.
Singa attempted to pick the cubs and transport them to a safer location as their mother would, but he did not know how to do so correctly, causing them to wail every time he approached them.
Dad was loving with the cubs and patient with their tantrums, but he became irritated when they began to bite his tail.
‘The mother was attacked by another lioness,’ wildlife photographer Linda Smit stated. She suffered serious injuries and needed to be isolated from her cubs for a few weeks to recover. As a result, Dad had to look after them.
‘He was attempting to raise them, like the mother would, in order to move them to a safer location.’ However, being a man, he lacked the necessary skills and expertise to carry them safely.
‘Despite his compassionate treatment of the cubs, they wailed whenever he approached and attempted to relocate them. He was extremely patient with them, but he did become irritated when they nibbled his tail.’
As the final photo reveals, the cubs were clearly overjoyed when JJ was restored to health by zoo veterinarians and returned to their enclosure.
The cubs were overjoyed to see their favorite mom once she returned from the vets, totally recovered from her injuries.
The cubs were overjoyed to have their favorite parent back when mom returned from the veterinarians, totally recovered from her injuries.
