TWO lions that were found malnourished roaming the streets as cubs in Montenegro and Ukraine have been transferred to a sanctuary in South Africa.

On April 26, the global animal welfare organization Four Paws transferred Nikola and Vasylyna from the Netherlands, where they had been in a sanctuary since 2022 to the Lionsrock Sanctuary.

Nikola had been found in Montenegro and Vasylyna in Ukraine. Both were privately owned.

Nikola was born in 2021 and was just a cub when he was found wandering around the town of Budva in Montenegro in February 2022.

No information was available about his owner. He was lost, malnourished, dehydrated and in dire need of veterinary assistance.

Vasylyna that was also born in 2021 was found roaming the streets in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine in August 2022.

She was unable to climb or run due to underdeveloped muscles.

With the support of local organizations and authorities, a team from Four Paws took both lions into care at the Felida Big Cat Sanctuary in the Netherlands, where they recovered and prepared for departure to South Africa.