Lion, tiger and bear are best of friends

A lion, tiger and a bear have become the best of friends after being rescued by an animal shelter in Georgia, America.

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Baloo the American black bear, Leo the African lion and Shere Khan the Bengal tiger get on so well that they share living quarters at the Noah's Ark Animal Shelter.

The 'brothers' were cubs when they were discovered by police in the basement of an Atlanta home during a drugs raid in 2001.

All three were malnourished and plagued with parasites. Leo the lion hand an open, infected wound on his nose and was confined to a small crate.

Baloo the bear had been kept in a harness that was too small for him. Because his captors didn't loosen the straps as he got bigger, his flesh grew around the harness, and he need surgical intervention to remove it and clean his deep, infected wounds.

Deciding that the animals were too injured to be rehabilitated and released back into the wild, Noah's Ark Animal Shelter have cared for them for the past 15 years. During that time, they have been inseparable - the only time they were separated was when Baloo had surgery to cut away the harness.

The brothers now spend their time happily eating, sleeping and playing together.

Allison Hedgecoth, curator of Noah's Ark, said that the animals brought comfort to one another. "All three are still equally affectionate with one another," she told The Dodo.

"Shere Khan has always been mischievous, and even though he is getting older this hasn't changed him one bit."