Dean Schneider

Dean Schneider (born October 3, 1992) is a Swiss animal sanctuary founder and social media personality based in South Africa.

Dean Schneider
Born (1992-10-03) October 3, 1992

Career

Schneider studied finance and at age 21, became an entrepreneur and created his own financial planning company. After three years, he had over fifty employees.[1][2] Schneider was a banker and financial planner in Switzerland before moving to South Africa in 2017 to establish a wildlife sanctuary and rehabilitation center, Hakuna Mipaka (Swahili for "no limits"). It is a 400 ha (4 square kilometer) estate for lions born in captivity. A separate area hosts zebras, impalas, kudu, hyenas, baboons and cheetahs.

Before moving to South Africa, Schneider flew to Africa more than a dozen times to visit land, make contacts, seek sponsors, and develop a 70-page management plan while waiting for grants. Schneider shares, on social media, interactions with wildlife with the support of a personal assistant and a content manager.

As of June 2022, Schneider has 10 million followers on Instagram. He spends up to seven hours a day on Instagram and answers approximately 800 comments and posts in different languages.[3][4] Schneider was inspired by Steve Irwin to help people connect with wildlife.[3] In May 2020, UK's The Times newspaper reported that Schneider is the subject of an animal abuse investigation by South Africa's animal welfare agency with regard to a video Schneider had uploaded of himself striking at one of his lion cubs with his fist after one of its claws caught on his face, that led to bleeding above his right eye.[5] Schneider defended his actions and blamed those critical of him for this kind of false and incomplete understanding of the situation and explained that the lion was unharmed and he was teaching it about boundaries. There is no official record for any investigation about this event.[6]

References
  1. Lopez, Elena Martin (2019-03-31). "Las personas protegen lo que aman". Las Provincias (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2019-04-01. Retrieved 2019-07-10.
  2. Pelerin, Juliette (2019-08-30). "Dean Schneider, rencontre avec l'homme qui danse avec les lions". Paris Match (in French). Retrieved 2020-04-21.
  3. De Santi, Katja Fischer (2019-03-28). "Dean Schneider, der Schweizer Instagram-Star, der mit Löwen kuschelt". Aargauer Zeitung (in Swiss High German). Retrieved 2019-07-10.
  4. Krähenbühl, D. (2018-12-10). "Schweizer Löwenflüsterer wird zum InstagramStar". 20 Minuten (in German). Retrieved 2019-07-10.
  5. Flanagan, Jane (2020-05-01). "Instagram's lion king Dean Schneider risks wrath of the pride by punching cub on video". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Archived from the original on 2020-05-01. Retrieved 2020-05-01.
  6. "Accusé d'avoir boxé un lion, un Suisse se défend". Le Matin (in French). 2020-05-05. ISSN 1018-3736. Retrieved 2021-02-28.
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