Lion Man » Zion Wildlife Gardens

dragon(ele)nerd · 06-11-2008

Guys usually have it the worst in the animal kingdom!

kiwipo · 07-11-2008

I too saw the show by Attenborough, and it was very interesting. However it was only an analysis of one hunt if I remeber correctly. Which means they may have filmed a number of hunts to get the one they wanted to portray.
Attenborough is a very experienced animal film producer who I admire greatly, but he covers every singel living thing whether it walks, swims flies of grows in the ground.
Researchers like Pieter Katt and George Schaller have spent at least ten years each observing only lions in the wild and they say as a rule lions do not hunt by preconcieved ambush.
Schaller wrote a book :The African lion, a predator prey relationship" where he said ambushes when they occurred were more the result of a large group of lions heading out over a large area and all lieing low until one made her move, and if the prey was chased towards others then they took the opportunity.

Only about one in five lion hunts actually results in a kill, and some lionessses are better at catching prey than others. I'm sure you have seen plenty of footage on TV where the prey manages to outrun the lion, or even fight her off. Have you seem the incredible video on the lions who chase a buffalo calf into a river, pull it out of th jaws of a crocodile only to have the buffalo heard come back to rescue the calf?

NZ Jeremy · 07-11-2008

I'm certainly more inclined to believe it is coincidence, it just makes more sense given their smarts... If tigers lived in prides on the other hand...

Chlidonias · 25-11-2008

found this today, about volunteers/prospective employees moving to NZ when promised work at Zion but then being refused upon arrival (I posted it in this thread rather than the "Lion Man Losing Licence" because the topic has been raised on this thread before)...
New Zealand Reality TV: Lion Park Workers Upset Over Broken Promises

Quote:

Thursday, 20 November 2008
Lion Park Workers Upset Over Broken Promises

Volunteers at Zion Wildlife Gardens are crying foul over broken promises by Lion Man Craig Busch and his mother Patricia Busch.

A number of workers say they were promised paying jobs after an unpaid trial period. Some even paid their own relocation costs to work at the big cat park - only to be let down by what they describe as a pattern of broken promises.

Briana Ryan told NZRealityTV.com that she also had a bad experience with the management at the lion park. She pointed out that many people would be happy to work there for free, and some might even pay for the opportunity to experience life in a big cat park, so there was no need to offer people paid jobs and then disappoint them.

Briana wasn’t offered paid work, but she loved her volunteer experience and was excited to be offered full-time volunteer work, only to have it turn to disappointment after she spent around $2,000 moving to Whangarei and setting herself up in a flat.

"I volunteered at Zion for four weeks full time, and then spent a month organising with Patricia Busch over the phone and via e-mail to move to Whangarei and continue working - as a volunteer (no expectation of pay). I moved north, she avoided me for five days until after I had moved into a flat and bought furniture, and then said she didn't want me there."

She goes on to say that her experience is not uncommon and that she learned that others had received repeated offers of paid work.

"When I told one of the permanent staff he said "Oh ****, not again." I asked what he meant by "not again", and he said I was the latest in a long line of people that Patricia and Craig had screwed over. "It makes me sick, the way they treat people" he said. "They've done it countless times before. The last girl shipped everything she owned over from Australia, including her dog, only to be told Pat didn't want her here."

Since then I have spoken to a dozen other people who tell the same story I do, except many WERE promised paid work "after a short trial period". I spoke to one man who moved his wife and new baby to Whangarei after being promised a paid position, only to find nothing there for him."

Briana says that many people would love to work at the park, and that Craig and Patricia Busch don’t need to promise paid work “and then shatter their hopes and dreams”.

"They could do what many of the big cat parks in South Africa do - charge people $500-3,000 a week to work there and experience life in a big cat park."

Briana adds that ex Park Manager Nick Coc-Kroft (who was awarded $13,120 from the ERA for unjustifiable constructive dismissal) “was a good bloke who often fought with Craig over the way he (Craig) treated the cats.”

Craig and Patricia will be back in court on Friday battling it out in a civil dispute over the rights to manage and market the lion park and the Lion Man DVDs, calendars and other merchandise. Lion park images are fiercely guarded and visitors to the park have to sign a waiver agreeing not to post any images or videos on the internet or use them for commercial purposes.

Patricia Busch and Great Southern Television, own the rights to the merchandising, but Craig says he signed away his rights when he was emotionally distressed and didn't understand the implications of the contract.

Craig's employment at the park has been suspended by his mother Patricia, who manages the park. He continues to receive his full salary and live at the park, pending the outcome of an employment relations dispute. He applied to the court for access to the park, after his mother padlocked the gates and refused to allow Craig, his friends and advisers, to enter or leave without her permission.

there are links on the page too, and also comments left by users

NZ Jeremy · 26-11-2008

This place is fast becoming an absolute farce..!

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