Feeding tigers and lions

Bernd Borgmann is living his dream and offers seminars with exotic animals on his safari feel-good farm

Bernd Borgmann has made his lifelong dream come true: The animal trainer lives together with lions, tigers and exotic hoofed animals on a farm in Lüdinghausen. He calls it Safari-Wohlfühlhof. It is a kind of sanctuary where Bernd Borgmann gives animals that have been abandoned by their previous owners for a variety of reasons a new, loving and varied home. Most of them are former circus or zoo animals.

His heart has been beating for these animals since he was a child. But Bernd Borgmann didn't initially think about making a career out of it. He followed in his father's footsteps and joined the family business. "I actually had everything," he sums up today. "But I wasn't happy." There came a point in his life when he followed his heart. He trained step by step with several animal trainers, first as an animal keeper, then as an animal trainer. He later worked with big cats in a zoo.

Individual animal welfare

The idea of his own animal sanctuary gradually took shape. Bernd Borgmann is also concerned with individual animal welfare, i.e. giving each animal the best possible, loving and varied home according to its individual "animal personality". It took almost four years for Bernd Borgmann to obtain all the permits for his feel-good farm. He found the farm in Lüdinghausen, where the animals have more than enough space. "But what's even more important than the space is that the animals are kept busy." With attention and food. "My animals are neither domestic nor farm animals, but they are no longer wild animals either, as they have lived in human care for many generations. They wouldn't cope in the wild and would no longer be able to survive under the harsh 'survival of the fittest' conditions that prevail in nature," explains the animal trainer. Nevertheless, they should not be confused with cuddly animals or even treated in a humanizing way.

It takes a lot of experience to work with these animals. When Bernd Borgmann enters the tigers' or lions' enclosure, he must have a strong presence. He must not turn his back on them for too long. Stumbling and falling is life-threatening, it awakens the prey instinct. The animals immediately sense the adrenaline that humans release. "The animals can also sense when you are exhausted, have slept badly or are a little ill."

"It's important that the animals trust me as much as possible. I can only do that by spending a lot of time with them every day, always treating them with love and showing them the necessary respect. You have to respond to each animal according to its character and allow it to fully express it."

Feeding big cats

Bernd Borgmann explains the behavior and characteristics of the animals in detail in his seminars, which he offers on the farm. Animal welfare and the handling of animals are also discussed before guests are allowed to visit the animals. The seminar participants are allowed to feed the zebras and camels by hand and pass meat to the lions and tigers through the fence with a bamboo stick. (The seminars are so impressive because Bernd Borgmann gives a deep insight into working with animals and because he treats his animals with great care and love.

Bernd Borgmann has close contact with many zoo and circus operators. "But I'm not taking in any more animals at the moment," he says. He can't do justice to more animals either, as he has a close personal relationship with each animal and deals with them on a daily basis. He has created a little paradise here for his animals and himself - but at the same time, it's a job that fills his whole day, 365 days a year. Nadine Wenge

Seminars: IIn the course of various seminars, Borgmann gives visitors the opportunity to get close to the exotic animals, feed them and learn more about them. The seminars are also about presence, about living in the here and now. Because without this, loving work with these animals is not possible. Tierwohlfühlhof also offers seminars for employees (team building, dealing with each other in the group/department and with customers, stress resistance). There are also seminars for managers (presence, calm, charisma and composure or stress resistance). Both individual bookings in a group and group bookings are possible. The group size per seminar is 10 to 20 people. Seminar duration: approx. 3.5 hours, minimum age 14 years (accompanied by an adult). The seminars can also be booked as gift vouchers. Book directly via info@safari-hof.de . More about the Wohlfühlhof and the seminars: www.tier-wh.de