Strange and stranger | World's most dangerous and controversial zoo

A controversial zoo in Argentina allows tourists to have extremely close encounters with some of the most dangerous predators in the world.

Here at the Lujan Zoo near Buenos Aires visitors can ride lions, cuddle bears, stroke tigers and feed cheetahs. Cages are accessible to everyone who paid $50 and signed the paper saying that if you are eaten, the Zoo is not responsible. Lujan Zoo is about 50 miles from from Buenos Aires, has an entrance fee of just £5.

Visitors can even pick up the smaller animals and manhandle them at risk to themselves and the creatures. Shockingly there doesn't appear to be much in the way of safety regulations to protect either humans or animals and Internet blogs are littered with pictures of tourists with the animals.

Even children are allowed to enter the lion's cage and fondle a range of animals that have the potential to kill or maim them.

Animal protection charity, The Born Free Foundation, has condemned the zoo and issued a statement to urge tourists not to visit it.
Will Travers, CEO of The Born Free Foundation said: 'Based on what I have seen displayed on the Lujan Zoo website, I am fearful that a terrible accident is going to happen.

'The zoo is, in my view, placing the lives of its visitors at great risk by encouraging them to have 'close encounters' with dangerous, potentially lethal, wild animals.

'Anyone who has any knowledge of big cats will understand that they are wild animals and, as such, as unpredictable.'