{"id":2492,"date":"2025-05-05T04:31:28","date_gmt":"2025-05-05T04:31:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/?p=2492"},"modified":"2025-05-05T04:31:28","modified_gmt":"2025-05-05T04:31:28","slug":"leopards-are-disappearing-four-paws-and-the-mission-to-stop-the-brutal-wildlife-trade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/?p=2492","title":{"rendered":"Leopards Are Disappearing: FOUR PAWS and the Mission to Stop the Brutal Wildlife Trade"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On May 3rd, International Leopard Day highlights the urgent need to protect leopards from the escalating threats of illegal trade and habitat loss. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1-5.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2494\" srcset=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1-5.png 640w, https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1-5-240x300.png 240w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Global animal welfare organization FOUR PAWS is at the forefront of efforts to combat these challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Threats Facing Leopards<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Leopards are increasingly targeted in the illicit wildlife trade. They are kept as exotic pets or hunted for their bones, skulls, and skins, which are then used in traditional medicine, transformed into luxury items, or displayed as trophies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/3-5.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2495\" srcset=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/3-5.png 640w, https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/3-5-240x300.png 240w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">South Africa&#8217;s intensive captive breeding industry has made the country a leading supplier in this illegal market, raising concerns among conservationists worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/2-5.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2496\" srcset=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/2-5.png 640w, https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/2-5-240x300.png 240w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">FOUR PAWS&#8217; Conservation Efforts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In response to these threats, FOUR PAWS established the LIONSROCK Big Cat Sanctuary in South Africa in 2006. This sanctuary provides rescued big cats with a safe environment that caters to their natural needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/4-4.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2497\" srcset=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/4-4.png 640w, https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/4-4-240x300.png 240w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Among its residents are Mike and Tulani, two leopards rescued from exploitation, who now live peacefully at the sanctuary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/5-4.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2498\" srcset=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/5-4.png 640w, https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/5-4-240x300.png 240w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Call to Action<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Vanessa Amoroso, Head of Wild Animals in Trade at FOUR PAWS, emphasizes the severity of the situation: &#8220;Leopards across Africa, the Middle East, and Asia have lost nearly 75% of their natural habitats due to habitat destruction and poaching. It&#8217;s tragic to see how these majestic creatures have turned into mere commodities.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/6-4.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2499\" srcset=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/6-4.png 640w, https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/6-4-240x300.png 240w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As the demand for tiger parts rises, leopards are increasingly being targeted as substitutes, exacerbating their decline. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"800\" src=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/2-6.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/2-6.png 640w, https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/2-6-240x300.png 240w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">FOUR PAWS continues to advocate for stronger regulations and increased awareness to protect leopards from extinction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Happy international leopard day!\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/RWvLHeiJPbU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On May 3rd, International Leopard Day highlights the urgent need to protect leopards from the escalating threats of illegal trade and habitat loss. Global animal welfare organization FOUR PAWS is at the forefront of efforts to combat these challenges. The Threats Facing Leopards Leopards are increasingly targeted in the illicit wildlife trade. They are kept [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2501,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[308],"tags":[527,526,524,523,525],"class_list":["post-2492","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-animal","tag-bigcatrescue","tag-endwildlifetrade","tag-fourpaws","tag-leopards","tag-savetheleopards"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2492","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2492"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2492\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2502,"href":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2492\/revisions\/2502"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2501"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2492"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2492"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topkeynews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2492"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}