This is NOT the Day to Test Me

We all have bad days. Car won’t start, kids won’t stop, you name it. You’re being bugged, and you just want to be left alone. As photographer Roy Zetisky notes, these everything-annoys-me days happen in the wild as well, as evidenced by Big Daddy’s message to a mate. But the message isn’t delivered with any real malice–a little growling and irritability can actually help keep peace within the pride.

“It’s a lot less aggressive than it looks,” says Roy. “They show a lot of love for each other. … It’s just a bad day.” Nothing a little “Me Time” can’t fix.

Photographed at Gondwana Game Reserve by Roy Zetisky