Lion Gets Cozy, Climbs into Vehicle and Over Passengers at Safari Park
When it comes to the many types of animals in Africa, lions — without a doubt — will always reign supreme.
Lions are observed across the world because of their everlasting beauty, graceful movements and fierce attitudes.
Of course, they have their moments just like humans. They can even trip up every once in a while, like the time one clumsy lion missed a step in a German zoo and fell straight into the water, seemingly embarrassed.
He swam straight to the edge to shake off his sopping wet fur and was met by his other lion friend who just wanted to make sure he was OK.
And while lions evidently can be clumsy at times, it is still a surprise to hear of a cuddly lion.
The words “cuddly” and “lion” are often words that do not mix together, but one safari in Crimea can now attest that cuddly lions do, in fact, exist.
Some passengers on a safari ride in Taigan Safari Park were rolling through the lion exhibit when a lion named Filya, who was relaxing on the side, decided to greet them in a special way.
Instead of portraying the typical fierce and sassy lion attitude, this furry guy eagerly stood up and approached the passengers.
Immediately, Filya greeted the driver with a giant hug and a kiss, while all the other passengers simply sat with their phones at-the-ready, already recording the intriguing moment.
As the passengers reached forward to pet the lion, seeing that he was friendly, he decided to climb right into the car and take the driver’s spot instead.
The entire time, this interesting and loving lion never stopped cuddling.
Intriguingly enough, the passengers never seemed phased by this odd friendly occurrence or afraid, despite the fact that just weeks beforehand, a woman was mauled by another lion named Vitya in the same park, according to Fox News.
The creature soon takes up the entire car and can’t seem to stop hugging the driver.
Finally, after a few minutes of cuddles and hugs, the passengers were able to regain their seats and move on in their safari tour as they said bye to the cuddly lion.
The heartwarming moment was caught on video in its entirety by the park’s owner, Oleg Zubkov, and has gone viral across numerous news sites, including the KHQ Local News Facebook page.
According to Zubkov, the woman from just weeks before, Olga Solomina, was visiting the safari park when Vitya the lion grabbed her by the arm.
She said, “(A lion) bit through my right arm and used it to drag me — like a puppet.”
But the owner pointed out that viewers enter the park with knowledge of the danger beforehand. Zubkov was there to bandage her and help her and attests that she is doing well.
The owner kept a close watch as the lion cuddled with the passengers, as the park is known for its up-close encounters with lions.
It seems these passengers came for a safari ride and left with an adorable and fierce new best friend!
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