Lion Rehabilitation in Antelope Park Volunteering

Please Note: This program is temporarily unavailable. Check out our alternative programs in Africa or schedule a one-on-one call with one of our expert volunteer advisors.

Over the last 40 years, the African lion population has drastically decreased by 80-90%, from about 200,000 in 1975 to as low as 32,000 today. In an attempt to offset the rapid decline, the Antelope Park lion rehabilitation program works to reintroduce the offspring of captive-bred lions into the wild so they can one day have their own wild-bred offspring, a process that volunteers will learn more about during their involvement with the project. Spending time with the cubs in the wild each day is an essential part of developing the cubs’ natural instincts, which is this project’s priority. If the cubs are to be released into a wild environment it is important that they adapt to, learn from, understand, observe, feel, and smell the wild.

Location of the Project: Antelope Park, 10km from Gweru, Zimbabwe Midlands

Project length: Min 2 week – Max 8 weeks

Arrival Airport: Bulawayo (BUQ) or Harare (HRE) airports

Volunteer Work: Management of the lions’ daily needs including food preparation, feeding, maintenance of enclosures and community work and conservation education

Age: 17-60 Age Exceptions: Volunteers aged 17 may apply with parental consent. Volunteers over the age of 60 require a medical certificate.

Number of Volunteers: Up to 30 international volunteers

Important Note: Suitable for groups and couples. Volunteers staying longer than five weeks will require a “temporary residence permit.” This costs an additional $500-600 USD, to be paid upon arrival.

What’s Included

Accommodations: Twin or quad rooms at volunteer camp

Food: Three meals per day are provided

Airport Transfers: Airport transfers are included on both arrival and departure days

Orientation: Orientation upon arrival to Antelope Park includes includes meet and greet, introduction to Antelope Park, project overview and any training that is necessary before beginning the project.

Support: Comprehensive and professional pre-departure travel guidance, 24/7 GoEco emergency hotline, experienced local field team.

What’s not Included

Flights, business visa (between $30 – $75 USD depending on nationality), travel health insurance, personal expenses

Volunteer Work

As a volunteer, you will get a chance to learn about and get involved in the three-step process of this lion rehabilitation program: the pre-release stage, the release stage, and the wild stage.

Some of your tasks may include:

Making toys from natural materials for the young cubs as part of behavioral enrichment to stimulate their predatory and sensory behaviors
Observing and collecting data on the cubs’ hunting skills
Cleaning lion enclosures
Preparing meat for the lions
Species counting on the reserve

Living Arrangements

Internet icon Internet: WiFi is available for a small fee, though can be sporadic due to the remote location.

Laundry icon Laundry: A weekly laundry service is available at an additional fee of $5

Accommodations icon Accommodations: Volunteer accommodations are a mixture of comfortable twin or quad thatched rooms at the main reserve camp with clean shower and toilet facilities located adjacent to the sleeping area. Your room will be cleaned daily by the housekeeping staff.

Food icon Food: Volunteers are provided with three meals a day, breakfast and dinner is served at the main camp of the reserve, and you will be given a packed lunch for your working day.

Requirements

Please take note of this project’s minimum requirements:

Minimum age of 18 (or 17 with parental consent)
Police clearance
Basic level of English
Good physical fitness
Motivation to work with animals
Patience and enthusiasm
Ability to work in a team
Immunizations (please consult your local travel clinic)

Travel Highlights

During their stay at Antelope Park, volunteers will have the opportunity to enjoy excursions to some of the other spectacular spots that Zimbabwe has to offer. These trips are also a great time for volunteers to interact and to get to know each other better. Some of the available activities include elephant rides, sunset cruises, horse rides, overnight safaris, and Polo Crosse games.

Project Orientation (Included):
On arrival at the Antelope Park project, you will receive a comprehensive orientation, including:

Volunteers will receive their volunteer’s manual which includes information that will help with their integration into the project, as well as give them further tips for their stay.
Introduction to all the project’s senior staff
Familiarization of your duties and the work areas
Briefing on how to complete data capture forms
Further information on the lion breeding program and our ultimate objective of releasing lions into the wild.

4-Day Victoria Falls Excursion Trip (Not Included):

During the low season, for an additional fee, volunteers may have the opportunity to participate in a 4-day/ 3-night trip to Victoria Falls. This trip to one of the Seven Wonders of the World offers the chance to bungee jump, go white water-rafting, ziplining, sunset cruising and more!