Brutus says: “My name is Brutus. I’m an African lion. You’ll mostly find me in steppes, bush and forest savannas, and semi-deserts. And, of course, here in the Animal World, too. We lions love living in groups. I live with my younger lion friend Simba. We get along very well and hardly ever argue. That’s pretty unusual for two males like us. Well, I have to say, I’m the more feminine of the two of us. Like my female counterparts, I prefer to keep my mane as short as possible. Apparently, that’s “in” right now. After all, I’m not the youngest anymore, so I have to keep up with the latest trends (malicious tongues might say it’s hair loss, but I know better, hehe). Unfortunately, this sometimes leads my fellow males to mistake me for a pretty lady. One day, as we were once again lazing around—you have to know, we can sleep up to 18 hours a day—something very strange happened.....

My younger friend Simba received a huge cuddly pillow filled with fragrant lavender blossoms as a gift from our zookeeper. Hmmm, it smelled so good! Simba sniffed it all day long and even fell asleep on it. He was so cute, that little guy, sleeping there with his pillow. Of course, I was tired again too, so I took my well-deserved nap. As I was blissfully slumbering in the land of dreams, I was suddenly woken up.

Something very heavy was lying on top of me. I thought I was still dreaming, opened my eyes, and there was Simba lying on top of me with his 260 kg. At first, I didn’t dare move because I thought he was sleepwalking. A flood of questions rushed through my mind. Should you wake a sleepwalking lion? Is it wise? After all, I don’t want a fight! I have no idea how he’ll react. Why is he lying on top of me in the first place?

While these thoughts were swirling around in my head, Simba snuggled even closer to me and started giving me lots of kisses.  My patience had finally run out. That was too much! Even for me—an older, wiser lion who’s above such things—it was too much. I roared at him: “Get off me right now! I’m not a stuffed animal!” 

Startled by my loud roar, Simba leaped away from me in a high jump. He shook his mighty mane slightly. Only then did he see who he’d been trying to cuddle with. Horrified by his mistake, he came right over to me and apologized. He said the lovely scent of lavender reminded him of his girlfriend’s perfume, which led him to simply mistake me for her. After all, the whole enclosure smelled so good. For once, I accepted his apology. However, I made it clear to him—as likable as he is—that I am a big, fully grown lion and not a stuffed animal.

Psst! You should know, I actually like cuddling. I’m a real cuddle bug, but as the King of the Animals, I have to protect my reputation. That’s why it would be nice if you came to visit me sometime—even if we can’t cuddle right up together—that would just make Simba jealous. But separated only by a pane of glass, we’re almost skin-to-skin—or fur-to-fur—close to each other!”