A few years ago I was at the Ft Worth Zoo and right as we were visiting the lions one of the cubs was being moved to visit the vet because of a limp. The cub was in a cat carrier and I got to see him UP CLOSE. He wasn't happy! Even a little bitty lion cub can sound scary---it's amazing.
Back in Australia at one of the theme parks there, they would take the tiger cubs for walks on a leash each day out in the public areas to get them exercise and used to people.
They were SOOOOOO cute! They'd walk about 3 steps, then flop down, have a rest, then walk a few more steps and stop again
Then they'd get a burst of energy, and run for a bit, then stop and nuzzle against the trainers for a bit. If you approached them from the rear, you could pat them on the back - they were so soft and cute!