Sheba the lion dies after overheating from vomiting, NC wild cat sanctuary says
A 17-year-old lion died after overheating from vomiting at a North Carolina wild cat sanctuary last week.
Sheba the lion started vomiting after she ate a meal and overheated at the Carolina Tiger Rescue in Pittsboro, and despite efforts from staff to cool her down and help her, she was unable to recover, Carolina Tiger Rescue said Tuesday on Facebook.
The Facebook post did not originally specify that Sheba overheated because of vomiting but has since been updated.
The staff used “cool IV and SubQ fluids” to try to help Sheba along with other “cooling techniques,” the sanctuary said.
“Unfortunately her age made her more susceptible to the increased temperatures,” the sanctuary said. “It is likely that her kidneys and liver were already not in the best of condition before this and simply couldn’t handle the additional stress.”
Carolina Tiger Rescue is a nonprofit wild cat sanctuary that helps wild cats both in captivity and in the wild, according to its website. It takes in animals that have been confiscated, abandoned or that need a new home.
“Sheba will forever be remembered as the matriarch of the pride of three that came to us from Texas,” the group wrote. “She always kept Sebastian and Tarzan in line and was the first to work out new enrichment items.”
This story was originally published July 23, 2019 at 3:08 PM.
