NSPCA welcomes long-awaited reform for lion captivity breeding ban

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CAPE TOWN - The National Council of SPCAs (NSPCA) has  welcomed the announcement by Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Dr Dion George, on the imminent publication of the Lion Prohibition Notice banning new captive lion breeding facilities.   This long-awaited reform marks a pivotal milestone in dismantling an industry built on systemic cruelty, reflecting years of legal action, public advocacy, and inspections by the NSPCA. The prohibition confirms what the NSPCA has long exposed: the captive lion industry has operated largely unabated for decades, inflicting severe animal welfare violations, damaging South Africa’s conservation reputation, and flouting constitutional obligations to protect sentient beings. While limited to new facilities, this ban sends a clear signal that the commodification of lions for tourism, hunting, and the bone trade is no longer defensible. The NSPCA’s decade-long investigations have laid bare the industry’s brutality. O...

NSPCA offering R20,000 reward for info on Raygun, the baboon brutal attack


MPUMALANGA - National Council of SPCAs (NSPCA) is investigating the brutal killing of a male Chacma baboon, affectionately known as “Raygun,” who was chased at Botleng Secondary School in Delmas, Mpumalanga, beaten, and set alight last week.

According to the NSPCA, Raygun’s body was later mutilated, with his hands, feet, head and heart cut from his body.

The NSPCA is offering a R20,000 reward for information leading to a successful conviction, relating to those who were involved in harming Raygun and the origin of the video footage, and urges those who filmed the attack to come forward.

Videos circulating online went viral on Friday, 07 February 2025.  Despite the footage, the school management refuses to identify those responsible.  After consulting with the school management, who are responsible for the approximately 1,800 children on the property, it became clear that this case is deeply rooted in superstition regarding baboons used in witchcraft.  The NSPCA was informed that the community, who allegedly initiated the chase after Raygun, requested the school to notify them if any authority attempted to investigate at the school about Raygun’s death.


“We are horrified by this level of cruelty. Raygun was in search of freedom, in a new territory – something all baboons do instinctively,” said Chief Inspector Douglas Wolhuter, Manager of the NSPCA’s Wildlife Protection Unit. “No animal should ever endure such suffering and agony”.

Anyone with information relevant to the investigation can contact the NSPCA at wild3@nspca.co.za or call 011 907 3590. All tip-offs will remain anonymous.

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