Saturday, April 18, 2009

Camera Critters 54


Camera Critters


Last week I shared one of my Little Cats.

This week I'd like to share with you one of my favorite Big Cats.


This is Jonathan and he is magnificent.

He has a story. He was raised as a pet and then got too big.
(Well, DUH!)
He was lucky. The Houston Zoo had room for him and now he lives here.





The lions have a wonderful area to roam.
This is their door. Really cool.
The gate lowers (where the keeper is standing).
From here the keepers can *play* with the lions.
They go through different commands.
This one makes Jon stand on his hind legs
and allows the keepers to check his belly area.
Jon was declawed by his former owner.
Occasionally Callista will swipe Jon a good one!



Jonathan, the King!




We took this picture last week.
For those who have cats, this pose will look familiar!
Life is good!

Thanks for stopping by.
Have a great weekend.




27 comments:

Jane Hards Photography said...

Marvellous facial close up of the big beast.

Martha said...

Thanks for stopping by my blog. What a magnificant lion. What are people thinking when they get such things as pets? Duh! is right. We have cats, dogs, and guinea pigs. Our one male cat, Kovu, is the KING (although the youngest cat) and he can be found quite frequently in the exact same pose as Jonathan!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Reader Wil said...

What a magnificent animal! I love cats, big ones and the small cats. Thanks for sharing and also for your visit!

Indrani said...

The most majestic of the Cat family!
Delightfully wonderful shots.

Anonymous said...

Yes, the last pose looks very familiar to me. We see that (in a smaller version) very often around here :)
It was very nice of the zoo to give him a home. He couldn't have been put into the wild without claws. Great story and beautiful photos!

Flying Solo said...

What a cat!!
Was your pet???

ninja said...

Just love that last photo!!!

Bruce said...

Hi Johnathan...yes, that pose does look familiar:)

Sharon said...

Beautiful animal but I am so glad he is in that cage!

i beati said...

Johnathan looks like a charmer. I haven't seen a lion in ages Sandy

Unknown said...

What a handsome fella ! :-)

I really like the closeups..

Diane said...

great shots!!!

The Bodhi Chicklet said...

The big guys really do resemble the little guys. Or maybe it's the other way around. Jon is lucky to have found that home. What are people thinking when the decide to get a "pet" like that?! Here I go again, but there ought to be laws...and I guess there are. Poor thing to have been de-clawed. I wonder what vet agreed to do that. That's it for my pontificating for tonight.

Dianne said...

yes I recognize that pose!
he is magnificent

floreta said...

what a nice expression in the first pic!

Norm said...

nice capture of that huge animal, his handsome and looks very friendly. Thanks for the visit.

Smalltown RN said...

That 's one big cat...but I do love lions...being a Leo..I just seem to be drawn to them...I love the playful one of him on his back....very nice...kind of fools you though that they could be more approachable than they really are...

Teena in Toronto said...

Jonathon is quite a magnificent animal!

Thanks for stopping by!

Adrienne Zwart said...

I can't imagine what makes people think they can have these big cats as pets. It's evident that he likes his new home at the zoo.

Oskar said...

That's one big cat.

Unknown said...

Jonathon looks like he's full of character!

Tina said...

hes gorgeous. its a shame you cant have them as pets.

Wildflowerhouse said...

I am so glad he has a home that he loves.Thanks for the story and photos. Sharon

carolyn said...

what a handsome fellow! this story reminds me of christian the lion from the 70s. you may have seen the heartwarming video that made the rounds on the internet last year.

Carole said...

What a gorgeous animal (and a happy ending).

Misty DawnS said...

Oh he's fantastic! I'm so glad that the zoo was able to take him after he got too big... what were those people thinking?

Minie said...

wonderful entry today. great series of him. i love the last post you were able to capture the close up one.