Two mistreated former circus lions have a happy future ahead of them, as they go on show in Kent for the first time. Chris Price reports.

Rescued from a life of obedience, the majesty has been restored in the eyes of these two ex-circus lions.

Going on show for the first time this weekend in their new Kent home, their days of performing in a French circus are long behind them.

Yet even though Brutus and Clarence can never tell of any pain they have suffered in their short lives, the scars will always remain.

“It doesn’t take much to see they were mistreated,” said animal registrar Markus Wilder, who has been a central figure in bringing these two Kings of the Jungle to Wingham Wildlife Park, near Canterbury.

“There is a big problem in Europe of big cats in circuses but there is limited information about these two. The French authorities had received complaints about the state of the lions in this circus but because they officially gave up the animals voluntarily, the circus can remain anonymous. So there is little information about their lives before they came in to the rescue centre in France nine months ago.

“ The shape looks like that from a whip and the fact it is a very wide scar is typical of wounds left to heal on their own. It was never stitched, which it should have been.

“As for Clarence, the pupil in one of his eyes does not dilate. He can still see out of it but it is very weepy. This is a very common injury after suffering a blow to the head and it was probably done when he was quite young. It doesn’t seem to cause him any problems but it weeps in the sunlight.

“He could have been hit with the handle of a whip when he was not behaving.”

The two lions moved from the Tonga Terre d’Accueil rescue centre near Lyon, run by French zoo L’espace Zoologique de Saint-Martin-la-Plaine.

“They want to help as many cats as they can,” said Markus. “They have a long waiting list of animals needing their help. As soon as Brutus and Clarence leave, they will be heading off to another circus in France to pick up two more big cats. There is a very quick turn around.”

Brutus and Clarence are Wingham’s first rescued big cats, although the park has rescued primates before. The lions add to the big cat collection, which already includes tigers and a puma.

It is unclear exactly what type of lion they are as record keeping between French circuses “might as well not be there” but it is thought they will be some kind of cross-breed. One of the few records the park does have proves the pair were four-years-old on Christmas Eve and that they are brothers. They know they were sold to another circus when they were 42 days old and were most likely fed on the bottle.

The lions have a new enclosure at Wingham, built from scratch in place of the old large birds area. Their enclosure will also be where they are quarantined, meaning there will be no more stressful moves for the lions, having arrived in Canterbury on Monday.

“It means people can see them more or less as soon as they arrive and the lions get used to being around people quickly,” said Markus. “The quarantine only affects our staff, who need regular rabies injections, must use stronger footwash and be more strict with the animals waste. It does not affect the lions what so ever.”

'They were so excited to see us’

When Markus accompanied joint park owners Tony and Jackie Binskin to see the lions for the first time in France, they were overwhelmed by the animals’ response.

“When Brutus saw Jackie he got very excited and was jumping around and trying to dig out of the enclosure,” said Markus. “It was very playful but because of their size it was quite intimidating.

“All the keepers at Tonga Terre d’Accueil are men and they think the lions could have been raised by a woman or someone who looked like Jackie and that is why they got excited. They could have been fed by a woman on the bottle and got excited because they had not seen a woman for a long time.”

Brutus and Clarence go on show to the public for the first time at Wingham Wildlife Park, near Canterbury, on Saturday, February 25. The park is open daily from 10am until dusk. Admission £10, seniors £9, children £8, under twos free, families £31. Call 01227 720836.