I Don't Care How Old This Is: Christian the Lion

Thanks to the internet, the 30+ year old story of Christian the Lion has gotten new play. At my friend's house, their kids were just reading a new-ish book about it.

Even the re-discovery of the story is old; the below clip, for example, is from last year.

Still, really cute. Even if you think these guys are either crazy, callow, or misguided about nature and wild instincts, it's just irresistible.

I assume anyone with young kids knows all about it; but what about the rest of us?

A print article from last year, with more details about the story.

I thought this might be the "Born Free" lion I dimly remembered from my childhood. No -- but the lion cub was instructed in the ways of the wilderness by the Born Free pair, who'd earlier successfully "rehabilitated" the domesticated cub Elsa.

This older video (seems to be from the seventies) is mostly duplicative of the one above, but spends more time on the time after the mighty lion hugging. Notably, Christian lets his pride of lionesses and all of his cubs know that Ace and John are to be accepted, and they all spend cute time hanging out swingin' on the flippity flop.

It's sort of odd that the lionesses seem to shed all of their instinctual fear of humans the minute Christian "vouches" for them.

Thanks to Former Lurker, at his website The Blind Ducks.

posted by Ace at 03:17 PM

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