In Spain, the white lion cub whose mum didn't want him

Born on May 31, the cub is the first white lion born in a Spanish zoo

Published: June 10, 2020 22:39 AFP and Compiled by Nathaniel Lacsina, Digital Content Editor

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Guillena, Espaqa: His name is White King, he's 10 days old and the zoo says he's a real "teddy bear". But the lioness who bore him rejected him after a traumatic birth. Image Credit: AFP

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Born on May 31, the cub is the first white lion born in a Spanish zoo. Image Credit: AFP

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Curled up in the arms of Juan Luis Malpartida, director of the Mundo Park zoo near the southern city of Seville, he's getting no shortage of cuddles and even a bottle of milk. Image Credit: AFP

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"It was a bad birth," he told AFP, adding that the mother, a white lioness brought over from Thailand four years ago had "laboured for 14 or 15 days before giving birth". And when he finally emerged, he was a hefty little fellow. Image Credit: AFP

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"Just imagine what she went through, I don't know how she got him out," says Malpartida, a 73-year-old who has spent his life surrounded by animals. Image Credit: AFP

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In the first three days, he didn't feed and after realising his mother "wasn't paying him any attention", they pulled him out of the compound, dehydrated and suffering from "hypothermia and hypoglycemia". Image Credit: AFP

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By Wednesday, the change was evident. Image Credit: AFP

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"It's the first day I've seen with his head held up, trying to run," he said. Image Credit: AFP

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For now the mother appears happy enough after her ordeal. Image Credit: AFP

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"She's totally calm," he said, indicating she appeared to have put the trauma of the birth behind her. Image Credit: AFP

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"She wanted to be free of the cub, she was ready to mate again." Image Credit: AFP

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White King will be one of the biggest attractions when this zoo, which counts 3,000 animals, reopens on Thursday following a three-month closure due to the epidemic. Image Credit: AFP

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For now, the Mundo Park staff will keep looking after him. Image Credit: AFP

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"When we see he's ready to be reunited with his parents, we'll do it. But it's a delicate issue because then he will competing with his father" for the mother's attention. Image Credit: AFP

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Zoo director Juan Luis Malpartida presents White King, the first white lion cub to be born in Spain, at the Guillena World Park Reserve in Sevilla. Image Credit: AFP

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White King, the first white lion cub to be born in Spain, sits on grass. Image Credit: AFP

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