Lion cubs - gone!

[rappa]

Hey Jack I have been talking to Daniel and I honestly don't care if I don't know. I know we will find out eventualy and that's fine. Point is WL has done thier thing again and thats all that matters, don't care why. What gets me going is how a heap of people come on a have big winge for you to tell them, can't they just get over it and find something more constructive to do??

[thunder001]

What if I said that I am sure the cubs have been sighted in a Brisbane shopping centre and were booked in over 6 months ago. The first thing is I am not 100% sure that they are the same cubs, but I am told they are almost the same....not beleiving this one though ppl as these cubs are from the Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo. Might take further looking into. Although I did receive a email card from the park 2 days before X-mas wich still had the lions included in it and also made mention of new Marvel attractions coming within the next year, useing Spiderman, Hulk and Wolverine. Something to think about.

[Ian]

Im sure the cubs just saw what wonderland had to offer in rides and attractions got scared then they both ranaway from the park that night. p.s flea will do your wonderland update later in week as just finished the ozcoaster whats to come in 2004 update featuring the photos on the staff page of us if any one wants a laugh http://ozcoaster.net/2004.php

[mx5_boy]

:evil: To the cretins that get on these boards and criticise people for wanting to know information on park operation including the dissapearence of the lion cubs. You guys are the ones who seem to have no life, if all you can do is get on here and tease other board members for their curiosity or love of theme parks. What is this site about? *Wonderland Sydney* I for one would like to know why WS removed the cubs after spending quite a bit on advertising them. I also find it hard to believe that WS would have made a monumental cock up of the exhibit, considering how popular the wildlife park is and how well run too. The only possible cockup scenario that I can see is if perhaps staff failed to take into account zoning issues for the park. As in maybe the theme park area is zoned differently to the wildlife park area and somone in management assumed they wouldn't have a problem having the lions in the theme park area. Pure speculation though, which is a part of this site! Cheers, mb

[Flea]

Today at the park, garderners were actually watering the area with a hose. Does this indicate that somehow the cubs may be coming back? Or is Wonderland just trying to keep the area neat and tidy until the time comes to remove the area? Personally I think that a new type of animal will come in and spend the remainding weeks in the area. Just a thought! Liam

[GoGoBoy]

The official reason for the disappearance of the lion cubs has been released... but certainly not by Wonderland. I found an article today regarding the cubs in the Spike section of the Sydney Morning Herald (edited by Peter Munro and Joel Gibson). For those of you that don't have access to that particular paper, here is the article: *** Lion Pride Dented Where, oh where, have the little lions gone? Three-month-old cubs Masai and Mara have had their school holiday stay at Wonderland Sydney cut short because of "permit problems". To be precise, Wonderland had neither the licence nor permit required to display the cubs. The Animal Welfare Unit of NSW Agriculture also found that Wonderland's "CUBby House" didn't meet "carnivore standards". Spike pities the poor children who missed out on supervised playtime with the cubs, but we bet their parents are pleased to have escaped the $199 fee for a 15-minute session. We're now worried about the fate of little Masai and Mara. A Wonderland spokeswoman said the cubs had been returned to their "original facility". Might they be wowing the kiddies at Steve Irwin's Queensland creche? ***

[Flea]

Daniel was right, typical Wonderland. Thanks for that GoBoi.

The Animal Welafe Unit of NSW Agriculture also found that Wonderland's "CUBby House" didn't meet "carnivore standards".

I actually found the Cubby House area to be quite nice, and had a lot of space for those little creatures to move around in. However the cubs are now much larger than they were (from when I last saw them 2 or so weeks ago). Liam

[Daniel]

See I told you guys it would come out soon. Sure enough, the papers got their hands on it. More bad publicity that they really do not need, especially this time of the year. Oh well, bad luck old sons Here is the story that the Daily Telegraph published. Lion cubs a wonder but without licence to thrill CUTE lion cubs Masai and Mara's stay at Wonderland Sydney has been shortlived - just over two weeks to be exact. Despite the Eastern Creek amusement and wildlife park promoting its newest additions, it turns out the park did not have a licence to showcase the star attractions. At the direction of Agriculture NSW, the 13-week-old African cats were removed from their tailor-made nursery, The Cubby House, on Tuesday last week and returned to the private property of their Sydney owner. A spokeswoman for the department, which administers the Exhibited Animals Act, confirmed the park was ordered to remove the cubs in late December - 16 days after their much-hyped arrival - because it did not have the appropriate permit to hold them. However, she said if the park was to apply for the correct licence and meet certain requirements, its request would be considered. However, a Wonderland spokeswoman said the cubs would not be returning. "They were very popular and everyone knows what a great attraction they were, but we only ever advertised that they would be with us for a limited time," she said. Now weighing about 11kg, both cubs should grow rapidly into 200kg adults.

[mx5_boy]

:shock: I expect WS to lauch a very silent and virulent court action against certain individuals that advised them that the exhibit was within NSW law. NSWDW advised them first then they had the misfortune of attracting the attention of the Ag department who happen to oversee TPZ in certain forms. I see government intervention in the most ridiculous form to let a govt run enterprise (Taronga) have a bit of a upper hand in the xmas holidays stakes. *sighs* As far as I can tell all the relevant animal handling documents were lodged with relevant councils and the relevant (that they thought) authorities for the handling of these animals. So please don't kick WS management. They thought they were doing the right thing. mb

[GoGoBoy]

Well personally I will be glad to see Taronga Zoo prosper over Wonderland these xmas holidays. Taronga truly is a great Sydney asset which is constantly investing in and reinventing itself. Then there's Wonderland; a park owned by a Malaysian company which doesn't seem to care that it's responsible for another Sydney icon... except for the fact that they can immediately profit by building a big ugly business park around it

[rappa]

Couldn't have summed up my thoughts better myself! Extremely well put, don't think anyone could disagree with you there.

[Daniel]

Oh mate it's not just having 'no' license. There's still plenty more to come old son. Keep your eyes and ears open for more in the future. I think it's rather amusing myself :twisted: