Chapter One
CUB LIFE
FOR many years my home has been in the Northern Frontier
Province of Kenya, that vast stretch of semi-arid thornbush,
covering some hundred and twenty thousand square miles, which
extends from Mount Kenya to the Abyssinian border.
Civilisation has made little impact on this part of
Africa; there are no settlers; the local tribes live very
much as their forefathers did, and the place abounds in wild
life of every description.
My husband, George, is Senior Game Warden of this huge
territory and our home is on the southern border of the
Province, near Isiolo, a small township of about thirty
Whites, all of whom are government officials engaged in the
task of administering the territory.
George has many duties, such as enforcing the Game Laws,
preventing poaching and dealing with dangerous animals that
have molested the tribesmen. His work causes him to travel
over tremendous distances; these journeys we call safaris.
Whenever it is possible I accompany my husband on such trips
and in this way I have had unique opportunities of coming to
grips with this wild, unchanged land, where life is tough and
nature asserts her own laws.
This story has its beginning on one of these safaris. A
Boran tribesman had been killed by a man-eating lion. It was
reported to George that this animal, accompanied by two
lionesses, was living in some nearby hills and so it became
his duty to track them down. This was why we were camping far
to the north of Isiolo among the Boran tribesmen.
Early on the morning of the 1st of February, 1956, I found
myself in camp alone with Pati, a rock hyrax who had been
living with us as a pet for six and a half years. She looked
like a marmot or a guinea-pig; though zoologists will have it
that on account of the bone structure of its feet and
teeth, the hyrax is most nearly related to rhinos and
elephants.
Pati snuggled her soft fur against my neck and from this
safe position watched all that went on. The country around us
was dry with outcrops of granite and only sparse vegetation;
all the same there were animals to be seen, for there were
plenty of gerenuk and other gazelles, creatures that have
adapted themselves to these dry conditions and rarely, if
ever, drink.
Suddenly I heard the vibrations of a car; this could only
mean that George was returning much earlier than expected.
Soon our Landrover broke through the thornbush and stopped
near our tents, and I heard George shout: "Joy, where
are you? Quick, I have something for you.
I rushed out with Pati on my shoulder and saw the skin of
a lion. But before I could ask about the hunt, George pointed
to the back of the car. There were three lion cubs, tiny
balls of spotted fur, each trying to hide its face from
everything that went on. They were only a few days old and
their eyes were still covered with a bluish film. They could
hardly crawl, nevertheless they tried to creep away. I took
them on my lap to comfort them, while George, who was most
distressed, told me what had happened. Towards dawn, he and
another game warden, Ken, had been guided near to the place
where the man-eater was said to lie up. When first light
broke they were charged by a lioness who rushed out from
behind some rocks. Though they had no wish to kill her, she
was very close and the way back was hazardous; so George
signalled to Ken to shoot; he hit and wounded her. The
lioness disappeared, and when they went forward they found a
heavy trail of blood leading upwards. Cautiously, step by
step, they went over the crest of the hill till they came to
a huge flat rock. George climbed on to it to get a better
view, while Ken skirted around below. Then he saw Ken peer
under the rock, pause, raise his rifle and fire both barrels.
There was a growl; the lioness appeared and came straight at
Ken. George could not shoot for Ken was in his line of fire;
fortunately a Game Scout who was in a more favourable
position fired his rifle and caused the animal to swerve;
then George was able to kill her. She was a big lioness in
the prime of life, her teats swollen with milk. It was only
when he saw this that George realised why she had been so
angry and faced them so courageously. Then he blamed himself
for not having recognised earlier that her behaviour showed
that she was defending her litter.
Now he ordered a search to be made for the cubs; presently
he and Ken heard slight sounds coming Out of a crack in the
rock face. They put their arms down the crevice as far as
they could reach; loud infantile growls and snarls greeted
this unsuccessful manoeuvre. Next they cut a long hooked
stick and after a lot of probing managed to drag the cubs
out; they could not have been more than two or three weeks
old. They were carried to the car where the two biggest
growled and spat during the whole of the journey back to
camp. The third and smallest, however, offered no resistance
and seemed quite unconcerned. Now the three cubs lay in my
lap, and how could I resist making a fuss of them?
To my amazement Pati, who was usually very jealous of any
rival, soon came to nestle among them, and obviously accepted
them as desirable companions. From that day onwards, the four
became inseparable. During these early days Pati was the
biggest of the company and also, being six years old, was
very dignified compared with the clumsy little velvet bags
who couldn't walk without losing their balance. It was two
days before the cubs accepted their first milk.
Until then, whatever trick I tried to make them swallow
diluted unsweetened milk only resulted in their pulling up
their tiny noses and protesting: "ng-ng, ng-ng";
very much as we did as children, before we had learned better
manners and been. taught to say, "No, thank you."
Once they had accepted the milk, they could not get enough
of it, and every two hours I had to warm it and clean the
flexible rubber tube, which we had taken from the wireless
set to serve as a teat until we were able to get a proper
baby's bottle. We had sent at once to the nearest African
market, which was about fifty miles away, not only for the
teat but also for cod-liver oil, glucose and cases of
unsweetened milk, and had at the same time sent an S 0 5 to
the District Commissioner at Isiolo, about 150 miles away,
announcing the arrival there within a fortnight of Three
Royal Babies, asking him to be good enough to have a
comfortable wooden home made in time for our return.
Within a few days the cubs had settled down and were
everybody's pets. Pati, their most conscientious self-
appointed Nanny, remained in charge; she was devoted to them,
and never minded being pulled and trodden on by the three
fast-growing little bullies. All the cubs were females. Even
at this age each had a definite character; the "Big
One" had a benevolent superiority and was generous
towards the others; the second was a clown; always laughing
and spanking her milk bottle with both her front paws as she
drank, her eyes closed in bliss. I named her Lustica, which
means the "Jolly One."
The third cub was the weakling in size, but the pluckiest
in spirit. She pioneered all round, and was always sent by
the others to reconnoitre when something looked suspicious to
them. I called her Elsa, because she reminded me of someone
of that name.
In the natural course of events EIsa would probably have
been the throw-out of the pride.1 The average
number of cubs in a litter is four, of which one usually dies
soon after birth and another is often too weak to be reared.
It is for this reason that one usually sees only two cubs
with a lioness. Their mother looks after them till they are
two years old. For the first year she provides their food;
she regurgitates it, thus making it acceptable to them.
During the second year the cubs are allowed to take part in
the hunting, but they get severely disciplined if they lose
their self-control. Since at this time they are unable to
kill on their own, they have to rely for their food on what
may be left over from a kill by the full-grown lions of the
pride. Often very little remains for them, so they are
usually in a bad, scruffy condition at this age. Sometimes
they can't bear the hunger; then either they break through
the line of gorging adults and are likely to be killed, or
they leave the pride, in small groups, and, because they do
not yet know how to kill properly, often run into trouble.
Nature's law is harsh and lion have to learn the hard way
from the beginning.
The quartet- Pati and the three cubs-spent most of the day
in the tent under my camp bed; this evidently seemed to them
a safe place and the nearest thing they could find to their
natural nursery. They were by nature house-trained and always
took great care to reach the sand outside. There were a few
accidents during the first days, but afterwards, on the rare
occasions when a little pool disgraced their home, they
miaowed and made comical grimaces of disgust. In every way
they were wonderfully clean and had no smell except for a
very pleasant one like honey-or was it cod- liver oil? Their
tongues were already as rough as sand-paper; as they grew
older we could feel them, even through our khaki clothes,
when they licked us.
When, after two weeks, we returned to Isiolo, our Royal
Babies had a palace awaiting them, everyone came to see them
and they received a royal welcome. They loved Europeans and
especially small children, but. had a marked dislike of
Africans; the only exception was a young Somali, called Nuru.
He was our garden boy; now we appointed him guardian and
lion-keeper in chief. The post pleased him for it raised his
social status; it also meant that when the cubs got tired of
romping all over the house and its surroundings and preferred
to sleep under some shady bush, he was able to sit near them
for long hours, watching to see that no snakes or baboons
molested them.
For twelve weeks we kept them on a diet of unsweetened
milk mixed with cod-liver oil, glucose, bone-meal and a
little salt. Soon they showed us that they only required
three-hourly feeds, and then gradually. the intervals became
longer.
By now their eyes were fully opened, but they could not
yet judge distances and often missed their target To help
them over this difficulty, we gave them rubber balls and old
inner tubes to play with-the latter were perfect for tug-of-
war games. Indeed, anything made of rubber, or that was soft
and flexible, fascinated them. They would try to take the
inner tube from each other, the attacker rolling sideways on
to the possessor, pressing her weight between the end of the
tube and its owner. If no success was achieved by this
method, the rivals would simply pull with all their might.
Then, when the battle had been won, the victor would parade
with the trophy in front of the others and provoke an attack.
If this invitation was ignored, the rubber would be placed in
front of their noses, while the owner pretended to be unaware
that it might be stolen from her.
Surprise was the most important element in all their
games. They stalked each other - and us - from the earliest
age and knew by instinct how to do it properly.
They always attacked from the rear; keeping under cover,
they crouched, then crept slowly towards the unsuspecting
victim until the final rush was made at flying speed and
resulted in the attacker landing with all her weight on the
back of her quarry, throwing it to the ground. When we were
the object of such an attack we always pretended to be
unaware and looked the other way until the final onslaught
took place. This delighted the cubs.
Pati always wanted to be in the game, though, as the cubs
were soon three times her size, she took good care to keep
out of the way of heavy spankings and to avoid being squashed
by her charges. In all other circumstances she retained her
authority by sheer character; if the cubs became too
aggressive she put them in their places by just turning round
and facing them. I admired her spirit, for, small as she was,
it needed a lot of courage to convince them of her
fearlessness; the more so that her only defences were her
sharp teeth, quick reactions, intelligence and pluck.
She had come to us when she was newly-born, and had
entirely adapted her life to ours. Unlike her cousin the tree
hyrax, she was not a nocturnal animal, and at night she would
sleep round my neck like a fur. She was a vegetarian but had
a craving for alcohol and for the strongest spirits at that;
whenever the opportunity arose she would pull the bottle
over, extract the cork and swig the liquor. As this was very
bad for Pati's health, not to mention her morale, we took
every precaution to prevent any indulgence in whisky or gin.
Her excretory habits were peculiar; rock hyraxes always
use the same place, for preference the edge of a rock; at
home Pati invariably perched herself on the rim of the
lavatory seat, and thus situated presented a comical sight.
On safari where no such refinements were provided for her,
she was completely bewildered, so we had eventually to rig up
a small lavatory for her.
I never found a flea or a tick on her, so at first I was
puzzled by her habit of constantly scratching herself. She
had round toe-nails) like those of a miniature rhino, on her
well-padded feet; four toes in front and three behind. On the
inner toe of her hind legs there was a claw known as the
grooming claw. With this she used to keep her fur sleek and
her care for her coat explained her constant scratchings.
Pati had no visible tail; she had a gland along the middle
of her spine, which was visible as a white patch in her other
wise brindled-grey fur. This gland discharged a secretion and
the hair around it used to rise when she became excited by
pleasure or alarm. As the cubs grew larger her hair stood up
all too frequently owing to the fear which their playful but
rough antics caused her. Indeed, had she not always been
quick to seek refuge on a window-sill, a ladder or some other
high object, she would often have been in danger of being
mistaken by them for a rubber ball Until the cubs came Pati
had always been number one among our pets. So I was very
touched that she should continue to love the little rascals
even though they diverted our visitors' attention from
herself.
As the lions became increasingly aware of their strength,
they tested it on everything they could find. For instance, a
ground sheet, however large, had to be dragged about,
and they would set to work in proper feline fashion, placing
it under their bodies and pulling it between their front
legs, as in later life they would drag a kill. Another
favourite game was "king of the castle." A cub
would jump on to a potato sack and keep her attacker at bay
until she was suddenly dethroned by the other sister coming
up from behind. The victor was usually Elsa who, seeing the
other two locked in combat, made the most of her opportunity.
Our few banana trees were also regarded as delightful
toys, and very soon their luxuriant leaves hung in tattered
fringes. Tree climbing was another favourite game. The little
lions were born acrobats, but often they ventured so high
that they could not turn to come down, and we were obliged to
rescue them.
When at dawn Nuru let them out, they shot out of doors
with a whole night's pent-up energy, and this moment could be
compared to the start of a greyhound race. On one such
occasion they spotted a tent in which two men who had come to
visit us were staying. Within five minutes it was a wreck and
we were wakened by the cries of our guests who were vainly
trying to rescue their belongings, while the cubs, wild with
excitement, dived into the wreckage and reappeared with a
variety of trophies-slippers, pyjamas, shreds of mosquito
netting. We had to enforce discipline that time with a small
stick.
Putting them to bed was also no mean task. Imagine three
very naughty little girls, who like all children hated
bedtime, but who could run twice as fast as those who were in
charge of them and had the added advantage of being able to
see in the dark.
We were often obliged to resort to subterfuge. One very
successful trick was to tie an old bag to a length of rope
and drag it steadily towards and then into the pen; usually
they. could not resist chasing it.
Outdoor games were all very well but the cubs also
developed a fancy for books and cushions. So, to save our
library and other possessions, we were eventually obliged to
ban them from the house; to effect this we made a shoulder-
high door of strong wire on a wooden frame and placed it
across the entrance to the veranda. The cubs resented it very
much, so to compensate them for their lost playground we hung
a tyre from a tree, and this proved to be grand for chewing
and also as a swing. Another toy we gave them was an empty
wooden honey barrel which, made a resounding boom when it was
pushed. But best of all was a hessian bag. We filled it with
old inner tubes and tied it to a branch, from which it
dangled invitingly. It had another rope attached to it, and
when the cubs hung on to the bag we pulled and swung them
high up into the air; the more we laughed the better they
enjoyed the game.
Yet, none of these toys caused them to forget that there
was at all times a barrier in front of the veranda and they
often came and rubbed their soft noses against the wire.
Late one afternoon some friends had arrived for a sun-
downer; intrigued by the sounds of merriment inside, the cubs
soon turned up, but that evening they behaved in a
disciplined fashion; there was no nose-rubbing against the
wire; all three kept a foot away from it. This exemplary
conduct aroused my suspicion, so I got up to investigate its
cause. To my horror, I saw a large red spitting cobra between
the cubs and the door. In spite of the presence of three
lions on one side and of ourselves on the other, it wriggled
determinedly across the veranda steps, and by the time we had
fetched a shotgun it had disappeared.
No barricades, cobras or prohibitions made Lustica give up
her intention of entering the house; repeatedly she tried all
the doors. Pressing a handle proved easy enough; even turning
a knob could be done; only when we quickly fitted bolts all
round was she defeated, and even so I once caught her trying
to push the bolt aside with her teeth. Thwarted in her
purpose, she had her revenge upon us for about this time she
tore the laundry off the clothes line and galloped off into
the bush with it.
When the cubs were three months old they had teeth big
enough to make it possible for them to eat meat. So now I
gave them raw minced meat, which was the best we could do to
imitate their mother's regurgitated food. For several days
they refused to touch it and pulled grimaces of disgust. Then
Lustica made the experiment, and found it to her taste The
others took courage from her and soon there was a fight at
every meal This meant that poor EIsa, who was still weaker
than the others, had little chance of getting her fair share,
so I kept the titbits for her and used to take her on to my
lap for her meals. She loved this; rolling her head from side
to side and closing her eyes, she showed how happy she was.
At these times she would suck my thumbs and massage my thighs
with her front paws as though she were kneading her mother's
belly in order to get more milk. It was during these hours
that the bond between us developed. We combined playing with
feeding, and my days were happily spent with these charming
creatures.
They were lazy by nature and it needed a lot of persuasion
to get them to move from a comfortable position. Even the
most desirable marrow bone was not worth the effort of
getting up, and they would roll into position to get at it by
the easiest way. But best of all they liked me to hold their
bone for them while they lay on their backs, paws in the air,
and sucked at it.
When the cubs went into the bush they often had
adventures. One morning I was following them, for I had given
them a worming powder and wished to see the result. I saw
them a little way off asleep. Suddenly I noticed a stream of
black soldier ants approaching them. Indeed some were already
climbing up their bodies. Knowing how fiercely these ants
will attack anything that lies in their path and how powerful
their mandibles are, I was just about to wake up the cubs
when the ants changed their direction.
Soon afterwards five donkeys approached and the cubs woke
up. This was the first time they had seen such big animals,
and they certainly showed the proverbial courage of a lion,
for they all charged simultaneously. This put them into such
good heart that when, a few days later, our forty pack
donkeys and mules came near the house, the three little lions
fearlessly put the whole cavalcade to flight.
At five months they were in splendid condition and getting
stronger every day. They were quite free except at night,
when they slept in an enclosure of rock and sand which led
off from their wooden shelter. This was a necessary pre
caution, for wild lions, hyenas, jackals and elephants
frequently roam round out house and any of these might have
killed them.
The more we grew to know the cubs the more we loved them,
so it was hard to accept the fact that we could not keep for
ever three fast-growing lions. Regretfully we decided that
two must go and that it would be better that the two big
ones, who were always together and less dependent on us than
Elsa, should be the ones to leave. Our African servants
agreed with our choice; when asked their opinion they
unanimously chose the smallest. Perhaps they were influenced
by visions of the future and thought: "If there must be
a lion in the household, then let it be as small as
possible."
As to Elsa we felt that if she had only ourselves as
friends she would be easy to train, not only for life at
Isiolo but also as a travelling companion on our safaris.
As the home for Lustica and the Big One, we chose the
Rotterdam-Blydorp Zoo and made arrangements for them to make
the Journey by air.
Since they would have to leave from the Nairobi airfield,
which was one hundred and eighty miles away, we decided to
get them accustomed to motoring, and took them for short
daily trips in my one-and-a-half4on truck, which had a wired
box body. We also began to feed them in it, so that they
might get used to it and consider it as one of their play
pens.
On the last day we padded the car with soft sand-bags.
When we drove off, EIsa ran a short way down the drive and
then stood with the most mournful expression in her eyes
watching the car in which her two sisters were disappearing.
I travelled in the back with the cubs and had armed myself
with a small first-aid kit, fully expecting to be scratched
during the long journey. However, my medical precautions were
put to shame, for, after an hour of restlessness, the cubs
lay on the bags beside me, embracing me with their paws. We
travelled like this for eleven hours, delayed by two
blow-outs. The lions could not have been more trusting. When
we reached Nairobi they looked at me with their large eyes,
puzzled to know what to make of all the strange noises and
smells. Then the plane carried them off for ever from their
native land.
After a few days we received a cable announcing the safe
arrival of our cubs in Holland. When I visited them, about
three years later, they accepted me as a friendly person and
allowed me to stroke them, but they did not recognise me.
They lived in splendid conditions and, on the whole, I was
glad to know that almost certainly they had no recollection
of a freer life.
1 A "pride" is a loose term used to
describe the association of more than two lions. It may
consist of one or more families living together with some
adults, or of a number of adults living together for the
purpose of hunting in combination, in contradistinction to a
pair of lions or a solitary lion.
