This is the beautiful moment, a rescued lion hugs the man she owes her life to. Though they grow up as the most fearless beast in the animal kingdom, lions are nothing but gentle giants and this short footage is the perfect example of how sensitive these majestic creatures are.
Valentin Guener and Sirga share this sort of special friendship since the lioness was just a tiny cub. The now 3-year-old female, was only a few weeks old when the kind man adopted her and saved her life.
Due to some unfortunate events, Sirga’s siblings disappeared and from then on her mom suddenly stopped to provide her the so precious milk.
On the brick of starvation, the tiny lioness was saved by a group of people who brought her at the Modisa Wildlife Project in Botswana.
Once she got there, things immediately turned in her favor. Maybe because she received some caring and compassionate people, including Valentin – the fonder of the rescue center – who even slept next to Sirga under the star until she was strong enough to handle herself (when she was about eight-month-old).
A couple of years after, during a visit there, Valentin wanted to see if Sirga would remember him. Dr. John Hawkins, who was also there, captured the moment on camera and it was so beautiful.
“This is a video of my good friend Val,” he wrote. “He is a wildlife conservationist that raised Sirga (the Lioness) almost from birth. This guy is exceptionally inspirational. He takes her on game walks and she can even hunt on her own!”
You can watch the heartwarming reunion, here: