Kevin Richardson is known as the Lion Whisperer, or the Lion King. He manages 38 lions, all bred in captivity, in his own lion park, and has developed quite an amazingly cuddly and playful relationship with the animals. The park costs him $15,000 to $20,000 a month.

Even though the lions are less aggressive than completely wild lions, this is still dangerous enough.

In Zimbabwe I played with a nine-month-old lion and was very surprised at how strong it was. Even when the young lion didn’t mean to be rough, he was rough. The lions in the video are full grown adults, and you can see how large they are.

The biggest danger is that when the lions play, they can be rough – though not meaning to hurt the guy, they could still seriously hurt him anyway. Human skin is quite soft compared to the very rough fur of lions, and if something happens and he starts to bleed, watch out. Nature can kick in quickly.

Still, it’s really stunning video. I’ve found some additional ones online, and posted a second below. Ooh, even better, I found a 45 minute National Geographic documentary on Kevin Richardson in HD. I’ll post that third, below.

Here’s the HD National Geographic documentary: