Jeff Lowe, owner of Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park, in Oklahoma, posted a photo of lion cub Nala to Instagram in August 2019. “How many likes can our little cutie Nala get?” the caption said.

She got 199.

Ten months after Lowe introduced Nala on social media, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspector Bonnie Boone found her lying in mud, “lethargic, depressed and thin.” Boone and colleague Debbie Cunningham were conducting a routine inspection of the zoo, which exploded in popularity after it was featured in Netflix’s Tiger King. The young lion was barely moving and had discharge coming from her eyes and nose, Boone wrote in the inspection report. Her breathing was shallow and rapid. Boone demanded that Nala see