One day, an unmarked wooden box appeared in the airport in Beirut, Lebanon. It ended up sitting there for an entire week until someone decided to open it. The airport workers didn’t think that would be an issue. After all, what difference would it make if the box sat there for a few days?

However, when security finally opened it up, they got the surprise of a lifetime. Three endangered Siberian tiger cubs came running out.

By this point, the four-month-old babies were covered in urine, feces, and all extremely weak. Really, it is a miracle they managed to survive so long. The box was so tiny that they weren’t even able to stand up.

“Nothing indicated that the box contained tigers or even live animals, and there were no details of a shipper or receiver,” rescue group Animals Lebanon (AL) wrote.

It turns out that the cubs were in route from Nikolaev Zoo in Ukraine to the Samer al-Husainawi Zoo in Damascus, Syria.

Because the box hadn’t been labeled properly and the paperwork wasn’t in order, the shipment got delayed in Lebanon where it remained for seven days.

When they discovered the cubs, they were starving and dehydrated.

And to make matters worse, a nasty insect infestation had developed.

“Once we finally got them out of the box, the box had dozens and dozens of maggots crawling around in it. There were maggots all over the back thighs of the animals and around their anus,” Jason Mier, executive director of AL, told ABC News.

As soon as they heard about the situation, AL immediately petitioned a judge to release the cubs into their care.

The judge, realizing that the tigers couldn’t be left in the airport in that state, decided to grant the order.

The charity provided them with a big open space to run around, and also much-needed medical treatment.

Luckily, AL’s wildlife veterinarian was eventually able to nurse all three cubs back to health.

“Their paw pads were raw and red from being covered in urine, as were their back legs and thighs,” AL wrote. “They had not received the proper vaccinations so all three were vaccinated. Only one tiger was found to have a microchip, though documents state that all three should have been microchipped.”

Although the tigers were to supposedly end up in a Syrian zoo, the whole situation was kind of shady, and AL was not so sure about the intended destination. There was certainly a lot of reason to be skeptical.

For one, the crate didn’t meet international regulations, and secondly, much of the required documentation was missing. Illegal trafficking of exotic animals is an extremely lucrative business.

“Big cats can be worth tens of thousands of dollars on the black market. The owner is fighting to get them back,” AL wrote. “And we are fighting for the tigers.”

While AL fought long and hard to keep control of the tigers, the judge decided to send the tigers back to their owners in Ukraine at first. For a while, it looked like the cubs were going to end up back on the black market.

Thankfully, though, the Ministry of Agriculture ended up ultimately deciding to give the tigers to Animals Lebanon! Now, they’re living happily in a sanctuary.

After such a tough start to life, we’re so glad these tigers ended up in a safe place where they can roam and enjoy their lives.

Check out a video of the three grown-up tigers at the sanctuary below.

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Article Sources:

Animals Lebanon

The Dodo

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By Rachel Shapiro

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Rachel Shapiro is a contributing writing at Shareably. She is based in New York and can be reached at [email protected].