Vikki the Vet Listens to Lionel the Lion

L is for Lion.

Lionel the Lion.

Lionel the Lion lives in Livingstone.

And Livingstone is in the country of Zambia.

Some lions live in India 

but the lion’s share of lions

live in sub-Saharan Africa.

sub- is like submarine. It means below.

So most African lions live in African countries below the Sahara Desert.

Vikki the Vet is on location in Livingstone.

She has come to visit Victoria Falls.

Victoria Falls is the largest waterfall in the world.

It is not the highest,

nor is it the widest,

but it does have the most water falling over its edge.

Victoria Falls is also called “The Smoke that Thunders”.

When Vikki the Vet landed in Livingstone she was greeted by a man at the airport.

“Hello,” said the stranger.

“Dr. O’Hare, I presume?” said Vikki the Vet.

“Blair.”

“Blair O’Hare,” said Blair as he shook Vikki the Vet’s hand.

(It is Blair O’Hare’s  job to look after lions.)

“How was your flight?” Blair asked to be courteous.

“It had its ups and its downs,” Vikki the Vet said with a smile.

“Very good!” laughed Blair O’Hare.

“So, what would you like to do first?” Blair continued.

“Would you like to look at our lions?

Or view Victoria Falls?”

“Looking at lions sounds good to me,” said Vikki the Vet.

After lunch, Blair O’Hare took Vikki the Vet to the lion sanctuary outside of Livingstone.

Lions are large cats. They are large and in charge.

Lions are both apex predators and keystone predators.

If you’re an apex predator, you have no other natural predators in your ecosystem.

You’re the king of the jungle.

Or, in the case of the lion: the sovereign of the savannah.

And if you’re a keystone predator, you keep the overall diversity of your ecosystem in balance by not allowing the populations of the other animals to grow out of control.

When they arrived at the lion sanctuary Dr. O’Hare introduced Vikki the Vet to Lionel the Lion.

“This is Lionel the Lion,” said Blair O’Hare.

“Lionel is a likeable lion.”

“He is liable to lick you if you let him.”

“But we discourage that.”

“We do not want lions learning to lick people.”

“You definitely don’t want to look like a lollipop to a lion,” agreed Vikki the Vet.

“Lionel the Lion usually has a rich roar,” continued Blair O’Hare.

“But not right now.”

“Right now, Lionel the Lion has laryngitis.”

“I’ve never heard of a lion with laryngitis,” said Vikki the Vet.

“Me neither,” said Blair O’Hare.

“I guess there’s a first time for everything.”

Lions are famous for their loud roars.

Their roaring can be heard from a long ways away.

They can literally be heard from four to five miles.

“What type of treatment is Lionel receiving,” asked Vikki the Vet.

“Lionel’s larynx is inflamed,” said Dr. O’Hare.

“So we’re bringing down the inflammation with a round of corticosteroids.”

“We’re not yet sure whether we’re dealing with an infection or whether Lionel has just roared himself raw.”

“So we’ll just have to wait and monitor the situation,” said Dr. O’Hare.

“Get well soon!” said Vikki the Vet as they were leaving Lionel the Lion.

Whereupon, Lionel the Lion licked his lips and let out a little roar.

And with that, Dr. Blair O’Hare continued as tour guide and showed Vikki the Vet the rest of the lion sanctuary.