Lions Are Protective In Nature
Lions are described as muscled felines, being one of the biggest in size among the family. Males are identified for their mane, which varies in color and thickness from species to species. What's interesting about manes is that they are meant to scare rivals. As for females, they have other great features that males don't.
Lionesses like Kiara don't have a mane that can scare a rival. Instead, females are smaller, but excel at caring and protecting. They have such a strong sense of nurturing that they remind us of ourselves, humans. Lionesses are real queens, as once you stare at them, you can't catch your breath!
Lions Are Top Predators
Scientists have already done plenty of research and results show that lions are the greatest predators! They hunt different types of animals, ranging from little ones such as rodents to big ones like hippos and zebras! They also hunt elephants and giraffes when they are young or ill. I think Madagascar has lied to us all...
Lions are fierce beasts* that don't have to worry about what they eat, and any jungle animal runs away from them. Would you dare enter a lion's cage after acknowledging these facts? I'd strongly recommend you all to keep distance from these beautiful but wild creatures. However, Adolfo is the exception to the rule. He would even hug them without fearing for his life.
Female Power
Lionesses rule the group and do most of the work. Females are true hunters, but they also take care of the cubs, protect their group and work together with other lioness. This sense of protection and carefulness is clearly seen on females, specially on Kiara, which is a sweet and delicate lioness.
Lionesses have strong feelings towards the group and succeed at protecting older cubs. The fact that lions live around 10 years in the wild is shocking: it's such a short time! When in a short time! When in captivity, though, lions and lionesses can live more than 25 years. So Kiara has a long life ahead.
Coming Close
Kiara has never lived in the wild. She has always lived in captivity, a whole life surrounded by humans, so she is wide aware that they're not meat. But that's not the case of all lions and lionesses, some of them may hunt you down with no mercy. You'd better be careful when approaching these creatures!
Safaris are a great opportunity to meet lions and get close to them. We highly recommend that you take careful measures and follow your guide's advice. As for Adolfo, he has experience and vast knowledge on the field, which allows him to get close to these animals without loosing his head.
Big Cat Vs. House Cat
We always refer to lions as big cats. Have you ever wondered why we do such a thing? Truth is that both domestic and big cats share several similarities. I bet your cat is always rubbing around your legs. Guess what? Kiara does the same thing too! And so do many lions.
Lions' behaviour is very similar to a cat's, and there is a reason why they do it. They show respect to dominant lions by rubbing their heads against them. This avoids violence in the pride and promotes respect. But what about Kiara? Does she behave like a big cat or a house cat?
Baby Kiara
Kiara was under Adolfo's care ever since she was born. Adolfo's skills and abilities as an animal trainer gave Kiara the best education possible. He gave her love and care for the first years of her life, as a real mother lioness would do.
Adolfo did a great job with Kiara, but he had known all along that they would eventually have to part ways. They had developed such strong feelings that Adolfo's departure was quite sad for him. As for Kiara, she felt his absence from the moment he left. But Kiara would always remember Adolfo's lessons. She never forgot about her friend. But how do we know this?
Growing Up
Kiara grew up in captivity. As soon as Adolfo left her, she began being taken care by other experts on the field who would answer for each and every of her needs. But Kiara's heart belonged to somebody else. Aldolfo had been like a father to her, someone who had taken care of her in the times she needed the most.
Years went by and Kiara became a fierce lioness. Adolfo's departure left a hole in Kiara's heart, but she knew that someday they would finally meet again. Adolfo had no other choice but to leave her because of personal issues, but he also knew he would come back to her someday.
Enourmous And Formidable Creature
But after some time, that little cub that Adolfo took care of no longer existed, because Kiara grew up so fast that she became an intimidating and imposing beast. Even though Kiara had always been near humans, she wouldn't get on well with any other trainer. She was quite moody and humans wouldn't take the risk.
Apparently, she wouldn't behave in the same manner as she did with Adolfo. It's not something that she did on purpose, of course. Kiara would act that way because she felt confident only with Adolfo, his loyal friend. Adolfo touched Kiara's heart, and Kiara touched his.
The Sound Of His Voice
Kiara was in the middle of her routine, just like any other normal day, when she heard a particular voice. You know who it was, right? Kiara's current caretaker had advised Adolfo to shout her name from far away, just to get Kiara ready for the big surprise. Was the lioness ready for it?
At first, Kiara would only hear a male's voice from a long distance. But a few instants later, just by analyzing her movements and expressions, it was easy to tell that she could recognize who that person was. She got even more existed as she distinguished a male figure approaching her at a distance. You won't believe what happened next!
Back Home
The lioness heard a voice calling her name and immediately recognized whose voice it was. She saw Adolfo approaching her and got so excited that she started jumping around. You could tell by the look on her face that she was full of happiness; after all, her loyal friend had finally came home!
No matter how well Adolfo knew Kiara, he was advised to keep at a considerable distance from her, just to take precaution. But Adolfo was also so excited to see his friend that he didn't follow the caretaker's instructions and headed towards her cage. Don't miss the following pictures of such a touching encounter.
Approaching The Beast
As Adolfo came closer, Kiara sat near the fence and waited till the human approached her. Although Adolfo was strongly advised to keep a certain distance from the feline, he wouldn't listen. Sure, what he did was a bit stubborn, but when you're as excited as he was, it's impossible to follow such guidelines.
Adolfo's return to Black Jaguar White Tiger Park was an unanticipated and surprising event for Kiara. She first checked that it was indeed Adolfo's voice, she wasn't gonna let anyone trick her. But it didn't take too long for the lioness to realize that Adolfo was indeed back.
You're Gonna Hear Me Grunt
Just like Katy Perry's song, Roar, Kiara began to give out loud growls. Of course, she was very excited, but her sudden roar showed how dangerous and fiery she had come to be. In fact, ever since she had become an adult lioness, everyone was afraid of her, even the other animals feared her!
So when Kiara grunted at Adolfo, everyone's heart stopped. Truth is she wasn't angry at all, but how could the rest of the caretakers possibly understand what she was feeling? Grunting was the way Kiara expressed her happiness, though the rescue center's staff was worried she would react aggressively. What if, against what they initially thought, she hadn't really recognized him? Was if Adolfo was now a stranger to Kiara?
Nothing Better Than A Bear Hug
When you long for something, and the time finally comes, a feeling of euphoria and joy takes over your body. This is what happened to both Adolfo and Kiara, who had missed each other so much! When Adolfo finally opened the door, Kiara jumped into his arms.
Have you ever seen a person's reaction when they meet with someone they love after several years without seeing each other? If you haven't, take a look at the picture above! The photo shows Kiara full of excitement giving Adolfo a great big hug. I bet you didn't see anything like this before. But wait till you see what happened next!
Down To The Floor
Kiara was so glad to see her longtime friend again that she couldn't help but throw Adolfo to the floor. Of course, none of them got hurt. Kiara was so delicate and sweet that they both fell down to a floor which seemed to be made of clouds or cotton.
The two friends had missed each other so much that they couldn't stop hugging and kissing! As you can see in the picture, Adolfo had a big smile on his face and Kiara was so excited that she wouldn't let him go.
She's Eating Him Alive!
No way! Is Kiara eating Adolfo alive? As you can see in the picture, she bit his leg! Wait! Or did she? Actually, she was just kissing him! Isn't she the sweetest lioness you have ever seen? Kiara wouldn't stop showing affection to his beloved friend. Meanwhile, the animal trainer was lying on the floor, with no worries at all, just enjoying Kiara's reaction.
This emotional encounter proved hat animals have a big heart and a beautiful soul. How could Kiara remember her trainer if so many years had gone by? Evidently, it's in their nature! These beasts are the most wonderful thing in the world, with no doubt. But hold on, this is not all! There's even more to this inspiring story.
A Lucky Man
Did you imagine this encounter would be so sweet and adorable? Let's be honest, we were all a bit frightened when we first started reading this story, so we can imagine that Adolfo felt the same way! The other caretakers were shocked to their very core, too!
Witnesses of these beautiful moment were astonished to see Kiara hugging Adolfo and playing with him. She had never behaved this way since Adolfo's departure. No one could believe it! Adolfo is a lucky man, who wouldn't want to have a lioness as a best friend?
Those Are Very Nice Jeans
Imagine coming back for a two-week trip and having your pet constantly rubbing you. It would definitely prove you that pet missed you! And guess what? A few minutes later, she began biting Adolfo's jeans one more time! Kiara was basically behaving like a child who wants to play all the time and be around her dear friend.
Isn't Kiara beautiful? In the photo above, she has an intense look and she was as happy as she could be. It seems like she really didn't like his pants so much, cause she tore them into pieces! I'm kidding, obviously, she was just trying to be friendly!
No Scientific Explanation
Not even scientists can confirm what went on inside Kiara's mind all those years that Adolfo was gone. It's not that she was sad or depressed after she left, like dogs or cats sometimes are when their owners abandon them or leave on vacations.
Nonetheless, the truth is that her character had changed ever since Adolfo's departure, and that such a reaction was something undocumented, at least as far as lions are concerned! It seems that lions are capable of feeling the same emotions than domesticated cats!
Neverending Moment
You won't believe how much time their encounter lasted! Believe it or not, Kiara and Adolfo spent half an hour together without letting each other go. This fierce lioness behaved like a house cat. Even though she was well-trained and tamed, it's odd for a lioness to react in such a way!
As we said, the other caretakers couldn't believe what was going on and were just as baffled as you are now. In fact, they wouldn't have fallen for it had they not seen it with their own eyes. After all, Kiara had never shown any signs of affection towards any other human during all this time.
A Touching Story
This story is 100% real, and Kiara is not the only beast that has plenty of love to give. There are millions of cases where humans and lions create such a close connection that the bond is then unbreakable! Look at this picture and tell me what you see in this lioness' eyes...
I see pure love. Kiara had nothing more than pure love to give to Adolfo. This real-life story seems to be a tale taken from a Disney book, one that you think would never take place. Well, you better start believing!
Admirable Work
We can't help but admire Adolfo for his incredible work done. When an animal trainer works with such passion, the creature can perceive this and strong loves can be formed. Obviously, this doesn't mean that the animal will behave the same way with any other human they meet! In other words, they're still potentially dangerous!
Even though she was never affectionate to the other caretakers, she never tried to attack them either. This suggests that Kiara could perfectly perceive that she was being cared for. These creatures are smarter than what we give them credit for!
Some Things Never Change
Kiara and Adolfo's story proves that animals and humans can be friends, no matter the species. It also proves that love is unconditional and timeless. Kiara's love for Adolfo never changed, it remained the same no matter the circumstances.
After reading such a heart-warming story, please don't jump into a safari and try to hug any lion you come across. But I strongly recommend to go and hug your little cat or dog, show them your love and respect, because animal-human relationships are unique and something that everyone should experience in their lifetime.