Predator World 9/14

Has your 2 year old ever been stalked by a lion? How about a pack of lions? If you answered yes to either of these questions, welcome to the club. After a healthy breakfast at Leisure Farms, we headed to Predator World. Predator World is like a zoo, only not. There are lots of cages with dangerous animals on all sides. We saw hyena, leopards, cheetahs, lots of lions, wild dogs, snakes, and a some random animals like goats and meerkats, which Tyson says are his favorite. Apparently, Jori is the perfect size prey for the young lions. The 10 month old and 2 year old cubs couldn't take their eyes off of her. If she walked past their cage, most of them got up and walked with her. She thought it was so funny. “They my friends”, she kept saying. No Jori, they actually want to eat you. A little creepy, but kind of funny too. When we viewed the leopards in their cages it was made perfectly clear why we never came across any in the wild. Even when you knew they were in the tree and you were pretty much looking right at them, you still couldn't see the darn things. You all know my history with the leopard by now. They freak me out. I asked our guide what you should do if you come into contact with a leopard in the wild. I am glad I found out, because I would have been eaten for sure. The following is a lesson in dealing with predatory animals. If you are approached by a hyena, do NOT back down. If you take a step backwards, they will know that you are afraid and that you are no match for them. Then they will eat you. If you are approached by a lion, try to make yourself look as big as possible. Make a lot of noise and don't ever turn your back to them. Lions are opportunists looking for easy targets (like Jori) and they will most likely back down if you seem at all threatening. If you are approached by a leopard, do NOT look into its eyes. If you do, it will see that as a challenge, and then it will eat you. Apparently, you are supposed to just keep on walking and not pay any attention to it. Yeah right. Another fun leopard fact is that they like to tease their prey. When they are laying up in a tree, they might toss a stick down on the head of their prey to get them to look up. Then they attack. So, if you are walking under a tree and something falls on your head, keep walking. Never mind that it could be a snake, and not a stick tossed down by a leopard, just keep going. I feel so much better armed with all this knowledge, don't you? The kids were really fascinated by all the different animals, but they were most intrigued by the gravel paths. Seriously, they kept playing with the stones. It doesn't take much to keep them entertained. We were only at Predator World for about an hour. We then headed back to Hammanskraal so the kids and I could be dropped off before the others took Robin to the airport. I was glad to be home and was ready to put the kids to bed. I had a nice night to myself and the others made it home around 10:30. I wish Robin was still here, but am happy she could get back to her husband and family too. That wraps up the weekend. Good times were had by all.