Thousands help paralysed lion

A 140kg lion suffering from paralysis in all four of its legs is receiving treatment thanks to tens of thousands of dollars worth of donations from internet supporters.
Donations from more than 35,000 people, who found out about the lion online, have allowed Mrs Borges to continue Ariel's $12,500-a-month treatment in the city of Sao Paulo.

One part of me thinks this is great and shows how much people really do care..

The other,cynical side of me thinks. couldn't this money be put to better use?

I mean, $150.000 a year would hire an awful lot of gamekeepers and save many animals from poachers..
From what I read this poor lion only has a slim chance of survival anyway..

It reminds me of the millions that were spent to try and save the whale that was in "Free Willy"..

How much better could that money have been used to save animals..

That's really nice of them. So nice, in fact, it IS worth all that money, IMHO. Do you have a link to the story, by the way?

The other,cynical side of me thinks. couldn't this money be put to better use?

I mean, $150.000 a year would hire an awful lot of gamekeepers and save many animals from poachers..

If this kind of thinking is cynical, then consider me 100% cynical...

Sorry, I thought I posted the link.
news.ninemsn.com.au...

I'm just gonna go ahead and delete my whole post since sarcasm/truth probably won't play well in this thread.

reply to post by Boognish


I can't imagine why people would prefer to help out the lion...rather than people who think they deserve the money.....

reply to post by celticpride


I get it. And I shouldn't have thrown the word truth around so loosely, because there's going to be different sides to this story. And proving which side is right will obviously be impossible.

I just think this was a tremendous waste of resources spent on a dying animal, and those dollars would have been better served going to something else. Imagine all the other lions/animals that could have been helped with those funds. That's all I was trying to say.

That and my other point was that some people are stupid, and will do stupid things with their money if they are properly prodded.

reply to post by backinblack


well, thats all very nice but i'd say the money would be better spent on the dying children and their parents dying from starvation in the horn of africa. in fact, if government leaders had an ounce of goodness in their bodies they would send shiploads of food immediately. perhaps they're busy fighting for oil.

My opinion may not be typical, but I think this is sad and a measure of our moronic attempt to personify everything. All the effort is just about making humnas feel good. You want to help the lion? Put him down. There is not ADA in the wild kingdom, there are no handi rails and ramps. All you do is condemn this lion to becoming prey or living as a tourist exhibit. Put him down.

It is good to see this lion getting helped from the donations that are coming in, even through the lion faces a brisk future. However, despite these donations, the lion may not survive. It is, however, in my opinion that this lion gets the best chance of survival that it can get, even through the treatment may be expensive. Yes this money could of been put to better use, but the point is that people are willing to give money to the lion in a attempt to save its life.

Poor creature-It must be horrid for an animal as active as a lion to be in such a sorry state for so long.
I hope the treatment gets paid for and works,so the lion can feel what its like to be able to run around again.

reply to post by Boognish


Its ok, I knew what you meant, I was just in a bit of a sarcastic mood myself.

I think the lion should be helped along with the rest of nature. But I always have been a bit of a hippy

Originally posted by backinblack
How much better could that money have been used to save animals..

Its nice to see love for other Earth inhabitants.

Originally posted by pajoly
My opinion may not be typical, but I think this is sad and a measure of our moronic attempt to personify everything. All the effort is just about making humnas feel good. You want to help the lion? Put him down. There is not ADA in the wild kingdom, there are no handi rails and ramps. All you do is condemn this lion to becoming prey or living as a tourist exhibit. Put him down.

I don't know,I can sort of see your point,but I always put that to the "would you do it to a family member?"test.
So no,I would go with trying to help the Lion,I know hes not the same as a human-but he deserves a crack at life as much as any other animal IMO.
A dog of mine once got a nasty broken leg,and the vets wanted him to be put down.
I fought them and got a bank loan,and that dog had 8and a half years of good life after he was fixed when they said it wouldn't work.
So I am probably a bit biased.

reply to post by Silcone Synapse


I know where you're coming from..
I had a beautiful German Shepperd pup that the vet told me had Parvo and that it would be best to put down..
His words, "Save the money for another pup"
I said no and it cost me $500 (20 years ago) but he survived..
What peeved me was the Vet demanded all money up front and even worse, he tried to take credit for saving him..

But what I think is happening is all these people are donating to animals just because they have a NAME and celebrity status as with Willy the whale..
The thousands of animals that are poached or die of other human intervention don't and thus don't get supported to this level..
BTW, as you see by my avatar, I love big cats.

reply to post by backinblack


Well done BIB,you did a good deed there,you fought and it paid off.
I love German shepherds,magnificent loyal creatures.I would remortgage my house to help mine if he needed it,just look at him:
files.abovetopsecret.com...

I won't post the pic here as its too big,sorry for off topic.

About the lion,I found this article.
The poor creature is in a sorry state indeed.
www.treehugger.com...