Wild Dog Comes Back to Life After Playing Dead to Escape the Jaws of a Lioness

And the Oscar goes too… a wild dog? You heard it right; this wild dog played dead long enough to fool a ravenous lioness! 

The video found below begins by showing a lioness holding a wild dog in her powerful jaws. Upon first viewing, the wild dog looks dead, hanging limp in the mouth of the lioness. 

Watch the Convincing Performance For Yourself!

As the video continues, the lioness slowly walks a few steps, still holding the dog in its mouth. Likewise, the dog stays still throughout the entirety of the walk. Onlooking can be seen in a safari car in the background, none the wiser to the ploy of the wild dog. 

After walking around with the dog, the lion catches sight of a different dog and starts chasing it. To chase the new dog, the lioness drops the limp dog to the ground, sure of its death. With incredible speed, the dog which moments earlier appeared to be dead begins to run away. The dog ran so fast in fact that the video shows a slow-motion clip of the moment to capture the animal’s incredible speed. 

The clip ends with the original dog running away as the lion chases another dog! 

What Do Lions Eat? 

You may have been surprised to see a lion eating an animal as big as a dog. Their common title “king of the jungle” does fit, however, as they are one of the apex predators of their ecosystem. As long as they can easily get a lethal bite on prey, they can eat it. 

Lions have been even seen hunting in groups, meaning they can often get prey that is even larger than them! 

With all that said, lions have an extremely diverse diet, that depends on what food sources are nearby. They are often known as opportunistic hunters, meaning they will eat anything edible as long as it is accessible. 

In terms of types of animals, lions often eat game such as: 

• Warthogs 
• Gazelles 
• Wildebeests
• Wild dogs 
• Zebras 

In addition to this, lions have been known to prey upon domestic animals, such as camels, cows, and goats. Interestingly enough, when lions hit their adult life stage, they will usually stay away from hunting larger prey such as rhinos and elephants. 

Why Do Wild Dogs Play Dead? 

Playing dead is an incredibly common tactic that is used by many animals. In scientific terms, the process is known as thanatosis and is characterized by tonic immobility. Among popular animals that play dead such as possums or rabbits, wild dogs will also use the tactic. 

As shown in the video below, playing dead is a tactic that is used by prey animals to reduce the drive for predators to kill. For animals such as lions, once an animal appears dead, they are more likely to leave it, normally to continue hunting. 

Additionally, playing dead is a way to expend little energy while still being defensive toward a large foe. With wild dogs, there have been many instances of singular lions being able to take on whole packs, so it’s no wonder why they are so eager to play dead!