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Miley Cyrus is voicing her support for a Change.org petition calling on South Africa to ban the breeding of lion cubs, then raising the animals to be hunted and killed by tourists.
The practice is known as “canned hunting,” and the bred cubs are dubbed “blood lions.” Each year, more than 1,000 baby lions are taken from their mothers and raised by handlers, who then tame the animals so they’ll be easier to kill as adults.
As cubs, the lions are kept in national parks and visited by tourists, who are often told that the lions were bred for conservation purposes. However, when the cubs become fully grown, they are caged in a reserve where tourists are allowed to pay thousands of dollars for the opportunity to hunt the lions.
According to the Change.org petition, “The chosen lions are taken into a different enclosure where they are starved and drugged to make them easier targets. The lion handlers and armed tourists then enter the enclosure… The starving lions recognize their handlers and often head toward the truck hoping for food but are met instead with a barrage of bullets.”
On her Instagram page, Cyrus posted the details of the practice along with a screenshot of the petition. After repeating the campaign’s closing message, which stated, “As inhumane and cruel as this breeding of Blood Lions is, it is NOT illegal,” the pop star added, “This is [expletive]ed up.”
