Kevin Richardson Biography
Kevin Richardson known as “The Lion Whisperer”, is a South African self-taught sanctuary owner who works with African lions.
Kevin Richardson Age
He was born on 8th October 1974 in Johannesburg, South Africa. He is aged 44 years as of 2018.
Kevin Richardson Net Worth
Kevin has a net worth of 40 million US dollars.
Kevin Richardson Married | Children
Richardson is married and has two children.
Kevin Richardson Early Life
He was born in the Nightingale Clinic in Johannesburg, South Africa, on the 8th of October, 1974. Kevin spent his childhood in the neighbourhood of Orange Grove. Kevin’s mother, Patricia, worked for Barclays Bank and was also born in South Africa. His father, who worked for a pharmaceutical company, was born in the United Kingdom and moved to South Africa from Reading, Berkshire.
Kevin Richardson Photo
He is the youngest of four children: he has an older brother and two sisters who are twins. His father died when Richardson was thirteen years old. While he was about sixteen, he met Stan Schmidt and began his career as a “self-taught behaviourist.”
Kevin Richardson Career
He went to college and studied zoology, but quit following two years of repetitive lessons on marine biology instead of mammals. Being an adult, Richardson believed that he would never have a career working with animals and that it would remain a hobby of his. Richardson started taking courses in physiology and anatomy in college and started a career in exercise physiology and became an exercise physiologist.
While he was twenty-three, he had the opportunity to work as a handler and cared for two six-month-old lion cubs, Tau and Napoleon which he later rescued. Richardson’s early years took place at the Lion Park near the outskirts of his home in Johannesburg. That Lion park has been criticised for allowing lion petting and for supplying lions to the canned lion industry.
Richardson still runs with the now full grown cubs in the wild. Rodney Fuhr, the facility owner started him off with a part-time job at the Lion Park. He and his team work with animals for the commercial filming industry and make documentaries to generate income to fund the facility. They also have a volunteer programme which generates income and volunteers who help to run the sanctuary.
Kevin Richardson Facilities
He worked in a 650 hectares (1,600 acres) Lion Park in Broederstroom, a town 35 miles north of his hometown, Johannesburg, in South Africa. When he specialized in lions, he also interacted with hyenas and leopards. Richardson spent the first part of his lion career at the Lion Park before moving to the Kingdom of the White Lion.
He has a special facility called the Kingdom of the White Lion in Broederstroom. The park, which was set up with the help of Rodney Fuhr, is 800 hectares (2,000 acres) and was built for the set of the movie White Lion. He cares for thirty-nine lions at this facility. Currently, the facility is private, but there are plans to open it to the public.
In 2015, the Kevin Richardson Wildlife Sanctuary relocated to Welgedacht Private Game Reserve near Pretoria.
Kevin Richardson Lion Care
Richardson has slept next to, fed and lived with lions. Richardson has also worked with cheetahs, leopards and hyenas. Kevin prefers lions to any other big cat. Richardson’s relationship with the animals, however, has not been an instant one. Kevin has known all of the lions he works with since they were cubs. Kevin still continues his bond with Tau and Napoleon, the lion brothers who were his introduction to big cats.
Regardless of his prior involvement in lion cub petting, Richardson rejects the traditional notion that lions should be mastered and dominated, preferring to develop a relationship over time, based on love and respect. “A lion is not a possession; it’s a sentient being, so you must pay attention and develop your bond like with any relationship.”
Kevin Richardson Dangers
Kevin has been scratched, punctured and bitten but is not dissuaded by these dangers. In an interview, he mentions, “Obviously one realizes the danger when working with animals of this calibre, I’ve weighed the pros and I’ve weighed the cons and the pros far outweigh the cons.” Kevin warns about following in his footsteps, however.
All the pictures of his adventures do not portray his years of experience and bonding. “People like to take things out of context. They don’t know the relationship I have with this lion.” As a rule, Richardson only interacts with lions he has been with since their birth.
He also differentiates his work from that of zoologists interacting with completely wild animals they have not raised, or that of trainers whose animals are required to perform on stage day after day.
Kevin Richardson Controversy
He once worked as a lion handler for the lion park that featured in a 2014 segment of the CBS program 60 Minutes, which revealed that the Lion Park in Lanseria bred lions to ensure a supply of cubs year-round. While the lions reached maturity, they were shipped out to canned hunting operations because they were too dangerous to be near tourists.
He left the park when he discovered the true intentions of the park owner. National Geographic”>”Fatal Lion Mauling Highlights Controversy of Private Reserves”. National Geographic. 2 March 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2018.