Wild animals don’t always have the luck to stay in their natural habitat. Oftentimes, people take them to zoos for a publicity stunt. The Leopard named Bakari was bred for that very purpose. As a baby, he was paraded on Christmas Eve to entertain them and let them have cool selfies with wild animals. People enjoyed that, however, the little animal was taken from his mother and was feeling scared.

As he had little help to the zoo, they decided they didn’t need him anymore. They announced that when he was two months old despite the fact that they had purposefully produced him.

He was lucky to have found an animal refuge in the Netherlands.

However, because the baby had lost his mother at such an early age, he had to be trained by people, which can be harmful to wild animals’ mental wellbeing. Despite its good intentions, the shelter was in serious financial difficulties. Many of the animals’ enclosures were dilapidated, but the shelter did not have enough financed to fix them.

For three years, Bakari was raised in a cramped cell with no nourishment while the rescue struggled to make ends meet. The sanctuary finally asked another organization for help in 2021.

They were aware that Bakari’s situation needed their urgent attention.

The wild animal was kept in a constrained space. He didn’t find it to be a pleasurable time.

The team immediately got to work enhancing his living conditions. The leopard received a brand-new home that was spacious, enhanced with tree trunks, and equipped with tools for jumping, sneaking, and hiding.

Bakari began to change for the better. As he gets stronger, he starts to identify and refine his basic impulses and behavior.

However, it was still not the life that Bakari deserved. The hundreds of creatures that the past managers had taken in could only fit in a little amount of room. Even though Bakari’s enclosure had grown, it was still a small portion of his natural range. He was ready for more, but Sanctuary was unable to provide him the opportunity.

The group had been trying to move any wild creatures that weren’t too ill or old to a habitat in South Africa where the large animals might live a native wildlife.

It was now Bakari’s turn. To avoid having to be put under anesthesia before leaving, the team spent several months preparing him to enter his traveling crate on his own. He was scared of the sliding door to his area. He now understood that it wasn’t all that terrifying.

When the moment was right, Bakari willingly climbed into his box and set off on his voyage.

He is quickly adjusting to his new environment. He can be seen in photos having fun in his new surroundings and learning new things.

The size of his new habitat will be a hundred times greater than his old one. Leopards live alone, so he’ll have the entire area to himself.

He will be given the freedom to roam around uninhibited and climb as many trees as he pleases for the first time in his life.

He will have the chance to develop and become into the leopard that he really is. Additionally, he can see, smell, and talk to other leopards. This incredible species belongs in Africa.