Four regal lions are counting on us. Will you be their Lionheart? 🦁Abdullah 31/01/2006 - 22/04/2026

$24,605 donated

Given by 372 generous donors in 8 weeks

Help our elderly lions retire in peace. Join the Lionhearts Project and fund the food, care, and quiet life these legends deserve.

Kamo, Whangarei

+8 images

THEY ARE SAFE AND THEIR HOME HAS BEEN SECURED

NOW BE A PART OF THEIR ONGOING CARE

The Lionhearts Project Trust began with a simple mission... that five extraordinary lions who spent their lives in the public eye would finally grow old in peace, on the land they know and with the carers who love them.

After a busy, often complicated history, Themba, Timba, Shikira, Cleo, and Abdullah (passed 22/04/26) have reached their golden years. We believe they deserve a retirement defined by dignity, comfort, and the specialised care they’ve earned.

A group of animal loving investors has purchased the Kamo Wildlife Park property and closed the gates to the public, turning this space into a private haven where these legends can simply be.

Meet 19-year-old twin brothers Themba and Timba, who still bicker over dinner like old men and require a rotating feeding schedule to keep the peace.

Then there’s matriarch Shakira (22), who still demands her favourite eggs be cracked perfectly or she won't touch them, with her twins Abdullah and Cleo (20) always close by her side.

It costs approximately $100 per lion, per day to provide the high-quality meals, veterinary support, and enrichment they need to stay healthy and happy.

We’re inviting you to be part of their story by sponsoring a meal, a day, a week, or a month of retirement - you'll become a Lionheart.

Please help by donating, sharing their journey, or introducing us to fellow animal lovers.

The Lionhearts Project Trust

Be a Lionheart!

Use of funds

Funds raised will go towards providing the high-quality meals, veterinary support, and enrichment the lions need to stay healthy and happy.

Other page links

Farewell to Abudullah - 31/01/2006 - 22/04/2026 22 April 2026

Today, Lionhearts is heartbroken to announce the peaceful passing of Abdullah at 1.11pm.

He was curious. He was calm. He was regal in the way that only a lion can be - unhurried, present, utterly sure of himself. And he was friendly, in a way that caught you off guard, that made you stop and just look at him. People who met Abdullah didn't forget him. He was, by every account, divine.

Shikira, Cleo, Timba, and Themba will miss calling out to their son, brother and buddy.

Abdullah and four other lions were facing euthanasia when the land they called home was put up for sale. Private investors stepped in and secured the land, and Lionhearts was formed - a dedicated group committed to managing the sanctuary and protecting these lions for the rest of their natural lives.

In his final months, Abdullah was fed well, given medicine, and surrounded by carers who saw him for what he had always been. He knew he was safe. He knew he was loved.

Lionhearts carries it forward - continuing to care for Shikira, Cleo, Timba and Themba, the other lions at the sanctuary, and raising their voices for legislative change to end private exotic animal ownership in New Zealand. There is no need for animals like these to be born in captivity and no animal should arrive at the end of their life having been failed by the people responsible for them.

Abdullah deserved better. So do all the animals who come after him.

Share this update

View and comment

On average, fundraisers pay just 2% to use Givealittle. This is one of the lowest effective fees in New Zealand fundraising. We charge a 5% platform fee to cover the cost of running the platform. Because most donors choose to top up their donation to cover this fee, the effective cost paid by fundraisers is about 2%. That means around 98 cents of every dollar raised goes to the cause. Learn More