Inside dramatic rescue of traumatised caged lions from Ukraine – including moment they touched grass for the first time

TRAPPED in a tiny cage, a lioness cowers in terror as bombs drop around her in war- ravaged Kyiv.

Heartbreaking footage of the three-year-old shows her struggling to move as she suffers from shell shock.

The starving animal was so traumatised by the missiles exploding around her in that she lost all co-ordination and ability to stand on her four paws.

Thankfully, lioness Yuna is now safe after the harrowing video clip reached the in , which took her in.

Managing director Cam Whitnall — who put together an ambitious plan to rescue the stricken beast — told Flying Eze: “Animals are often the forgotten victims of war.

“When we think about conflict, our focus naturally turns to people — civilians, soldiers and displaced communities.

“But animals, both wild and domestic, are caught in the crossfire, too.

“Unlike humans, animals don’t start wars, they don’t take sides, they don’t have means to evacuate or seek shelter.

“They are completely at the mercy of human decisions, which makes it our responsibility to protect them.”;;

Yuna had been brought to Kyiv illegally and kept trapped in a four metre by three metre cage on concrete.

She had never been outside.

The lioness was stranded without food as the war raged.

But in January 2023, she was chanced upon by military volunteers searching homes in the city, where she had been abandoned.

They alerted Natalia Popova, from Ukraine-based Wild Animals Rescue Center, whose team drove through the country’s capital while it was under siege to save Yuna.

Handlers sedated and loaded the lioness into a truck to transport her to their nearby sanctuary.

They found her to be severely malnourished, and the heavy shelling had left her so traumatised it had robbed her of her ability to stand, walk or move.

Rescuers feared she may have to be put to sleep to end her suffering.

After seeing the video of Yuna’s ordeal on , Cam reached out to offer a safe space for the lioness and, after intense planning, she finally arrived in the UK last summer.

But one big cat for rehoming quickly became five.

Male lion Rori, three, was trapped in the Sumy region, next to heavily besieged Kharkiv — and was also suffering from shell shock, which affected his hind legs.

Then there was Vanda, 18 months, who had been kept in southern Ukraine as a family pet.

She was riddled with parasites and suffering from rickets that had stunted her growth.

Lion sisters Amani and Lira, both three, were also removed from a breeding facility.

‘ANSWER TO CRUELTY'

All four had been purchased illegally and are believed to have been used for breeding or photos with tourists.

But getting five big cats out of a war zone was no easy feat.

Once loaded into a truck, Yuna, who travelled first, spent three days getting from Ukraine to The Big Cat Sanctuary.

Rescuers had to act fast amid fears that if she did not reach a permanent home quickly, she might struggle to recover.

But Rori’s rescue was to be much more difficult due to his location close to the border with which was under active fire.

More than 600,000 civilians had been evacuated from the area, and Rori’s owner had left him behind in a private menagerie.

Brave volunteers drove a truck into the Sumy region of Ukraine, facing shells falling around them, as they tried to get Rori sedated for safe travel.

Once tranquillised, he was loaded into a crate and then carried to a truck for volunteers to drive him 2,326km to Natuurhulpcentrum in .

This is where he would stay until the Big Cat Sanctuary was finished building its new lion rehabilitation centre months later.

Vanda was similarly moved from Southern Ukraine to Planckendael Zoo, Belgium, then Amani and Lira had a stop at Pairi Daiza, Belgium, awaiting transfer to the UK.

Last month, the four finally travelled to their forever home in Kent, where they joined Yuna.

Each has a habitat specially designed for their individual needs.

Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK, General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, visited them in their new den.

He hailed The Big Cat Sanctuary as a “place where life wins over war, and care is the best answer to cruelty”;;.

He added: “The five lions, who now live here, are not just animals.

“They are living victims of this war.

“They have seen the darkness that comes when people forget kindness.”;;

Sanctuary staff are impressed by how quickly all five have settled in.

Cheeky Yuna is even “flirting”;; with Rori, who has been unofficially dubbed the King of Kent.

Cam said of the lions’ custom-built lair: “This is a symbol of hope and resilience.

“It is a place where these lions, who have endured so much, can finally experience safety, care and tranquillity.

“What we have built here is more than just a home.

“It’s a testament to what can be achieved when people unite for a greater cause.”;;

Unlock even more award-winning articles as Flying Eze launches brand new membership programme –.