John Forga was not that surprised to hear there might be an adult male African lion roaming the mountains of Greenbrier County.

Forga and his wife, Carol, operate the Tiger Mountain Refuge near Rainelle where exotic animals often end up.  The non-profit operation provides a safe, permanent habitat for the animals.

If the couple happens to track down and catch the lion that local hunter Jim Shortridge says he saw scouting for deer near Cold Knob last week, the big cat will be added to their growing collection of previously abused, neglected, unwanted or confiscated animals.

The couple has made a home for more than 60 species of exotic animals.  Some come from pet stores and zoos that are going out of business.  But many are pets that were abandoned or became too much for their owners.

Among the animals are two tigers, a black leopard and 600-pound lion named Alex. 

The animals come from all over. 

One alligator now at the refuge was found in a creek in Clarksburg. Another was discovered by a security guard near the state Capitol.

A 40-pound turtle was getting too big for the owner to care for.  John says it will eventually reach 200 pounds.   There is also a 22-foot-long Burmese python that started out as someone's pet.

John and Carol used to operate a pet store in Summersville.  They moved into their current occupation almost by accident.  Six years ago they paid $1,700 for a blind African lynx at an auction because another bidder was going to put the animal down and mount it.

They still have the cat, even though it has never warmed to John.  "That thing still hates me," he said.

John, Shortridge and Beckley Register-Herald reporter Chris Giggenbach returned to Cold Knob yesterday hoping to see signs of the lion.  They did not, but John left behind 20 pounds of raw chicken while spraying the area with cologne.  The scent may pique the lion's curiosity.

They'll head back up there soon, perhaps today, with hopes of spotting the lion. 

Shortridge, an experienced hunter, estimated the lion to be between 250 and 300 pounds.  Forga says that would make it about a year old, but it could be an older lion that has lost weight.

An African lion raised as someone's pet, then turned lose or escaping into the wild will soon be helpless, John said.  The animal has probably had its claws removed and perhaps its fangs as well. 

He predicts the lion will not live much beyond the first snowfall.

John and Carol would love to save the lion, just as they have saved dozens of other animals. 

Their non-profit business, however, remains unpredictable.  Last year they got a pair of endangered skinks (lizards).  It's supposed to be a breeding pair, but Forga says, "It's been probably a year and a half and nothing yet, no young ones." 

Here's hoping he has better luck today on his hunting trip.