Holiday Greetings from Namibia!

I just want to thank all of our Cheetah Family for your support this past year.

Over here we are in the middle of the Namibian summer and it is hot – dams are getting low, we need rain.

With the holidays upon us, we are all working on finishing up many projects before the year ends and many CCF staff are away for the holidays. With this we are finishing up data around out camera trapping census and are very excited with our preliminary findings.

Sadly, we lost one of our beautiful resident cheetahs, Elsie. But we had some happy events too: we had two litters of puppies, now at nearly eight weeks and they will be heading out to their new homes this week and just after Christmas.

We worked on a wild male cheetah last week and the farmer’s entire family came over to the CCF to help work him up and then after tagging the cheetah the farmer let us release the cheetah back on his farm. He was not having any problems with cheetahs towards his livestock – not sure why he had the trap open – but the grand daughters talked him into taking the trap away! Also, we have a film crew here and they were able to document this whole process. It was very nice.

All else is going on OK and we do hope for a Great 2007!

Laurie

Sad news about Elsie

Dear Cheetah Friends,

We are writing to you with some sad news about one of our captive cheetahs, Elsie.

Elsie's keeper, Marianne, found Elsie dead while checking fences last Sunday. She was only about two meters from her empty food bowl that was given to her on Saturday, so she must have died soon after she ate on that day.

Marianna immediately brought Elsie to back to the CCF clinic in order to perform a necropsy and find the cause of death. Her spleen and her heart were both enlarged. She evidently died of old age. It is possible that she had a stroke because the right side of her face was a bit bruised, probably from the fall.

We are so sorry to give you this news. Elsie was approximately 15 years old and came to CCF just over two years ago, after she was caught taking livestock. She had cataracts in both eyes, very blunt canines, and was missing all her incisors. Notwithstanding, she was a grand old lady who endeared all of us at CCF, and will be missed very much.

We hope that you will consider sponsoring another one of the cheetahs residing at CCF that need your help. You can choose one by visiting the Sponsorship Pages on this web site.

With many thanks, and our warmest wishes for a Happy Holiday Season,

Patricia Tricorache
Asst. Director, International Programs
Cheetah Conservation Fund

From Algeria to Ethiopia

I have just returned from Algeria. We learned a lot and there is a lot more to do. There is a good possibility that members from both National Parks where there are cheetahs will be coming to CCF for more training, and that we will be assisting in more extensive training courses for their staff and other professionals in both the Ministry of Environment and the Forestry Departments.

Now I am about to leave for Ethiopia for a planning workshop on Monday around the issues of captive and wild large carnivores. This workshop has come about as a result of the two cheetah cubs that were confiscated in November 2005 in Ethiopia, and now the lion issues are really bringing things to the forefront.

The meeting will also be discussing the illegal trade of the large carnivores from the region (cheetahs and lions)- and how to begin a strategy around protecting the wild populations of these cats.

Laurie

Two sad losses

You might recall Shiraz that gave birth to four cubs last year. She was part of a soft-release project and released into Bellebeno Game Camp in February 2006 with her cubs. After four months she moved out of Bellebeno onto our Big Field (the Little Serengeti) and eventually ventured onto our neighbour's land. Shortly after that, Shiraz was re-released with her four cubs at Erindi Ranch, a 64.000ha-fenced farm between Okahandja and Omaruru. She was being tracked by the staff at Erindi and visited regularly by CCF staff to monitor her well being. Shiraz became a very successful hunter. Unfortunately, we got a call last week from the farm manager. He found Shiraz dead. We don't know what happened as her body was too deteriorated to perform a necropsy.

Shiraz's cubs are now 16-months old. Cheetah cubs stay with their mother 18 to 22 months, so these cubs are actually a bit too young to be out by themselves. However, since Shiraz and her cubs practically learned to hunt together, we believe the cubs will be able to take care of themselves. They were actually found feeding on an impala the same day Shiraz was found dead. They have shown to be successful hunters and will remain at Erindi Ranch. CCF will radio collar them for regular tracking to ensure that they are doing well.

Also, on the 3rd of November 2006, one of our Bellebeno residents, Daisy, did not show up at feeding time. Cheetahs’ skipping meals from time to time is a normal occurrence, as occasionally they hunt small animals on their own. However, her sister Rosy showed up every time, and after a couple days the staff decided to search for her. Eight people walked the 64-ha enclosure, and found her body in the bush a few meters from the road. She was brought back to CCF, where staff went through the remains for any sign of injury or cause of death. None was identified; however, we are thinking that it might have been a snake bite, as it was so sudden. Her bones will be preserved for our collection.

These sad losses are a good reminder of our mission to save the wild cheetah. Cheetahs are not meant to be in captivity, and even though CCF's resident cheetahs receive the best possible care thanks to all our staff, volunteers and cheetah sponsors like you, we would be happier knowing that all cheetahs in the world are able to live free and learn how to survive on their own.

Back in Namibia - 9 Nov 2006

I just arrived back to Namibia from the US. Just coming home was exciting today as 2 big male cheetahs arrived – we worked them up – had 25 Namibian farmers at one of our week long courses and all was exciting – I arrived at 12:00 and we were working on the cheetahs by 2pm – never a dull moment – these 2 big males will be released back to the wild in the next few days –

All the best and thanks again for your support – it means so much.

Laurie

Cheetah Updates - July 2006

BLONDI

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Blondi! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

She continues to exercise regularly for visitors by running after her lure system. She is the friendliest and most comfortable around people; when we have big groups of people, up to forty or so, we can bring her closest to them for the best photographs.

From mid-May through mid-August, Blondi has been participating in a groundbreaking study on cheetah reproduction conducted in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, DC. CCF staff and volunteers have been tracking Blondi’s estrus cycle through fecal collection and behavioral observation in order to better understand the reproductive biology in cheetahs of different ages. Blondi is now six years old and considered in the prime of her life.

The 11 CCF cheetahs that are a part of this groundbreaking study were injected with a series of two hormones 84 hours apart to facilitate follicle growth and then to induce egg formation on the follicles.

Since Blondi is so friendly and comfortable around people, she was the first of her pen mates (Sandy, Dusty, and Leia) to be injected and operated on. Everything went smoothly: the two injections and then the anesthesia. After she was put under anesthesia, the team used ultrasound to see her reproductive organs and then extracted her eggs, a task that requires precision timing—right before the female ovulates.

Her collection was successful and her eggs were in very good condition. Her eggs will be fertilized in our lab with sperm from Cruise, our most dominant male. The team is now tracking the development of the embryos in an incubator and not in the female cheetahs. This process is called in vitro fertilization (IVF).

This important study is helping develop methods of impregnating the females and thus conserving their invaluable genes. If successful, in the future, it will not only assist the non-reproductive captive cheetahs in the world, but will be available to assist in maintaining the small, fragmented cheetah populations that are in great need of genetic variation. Although saving habitat is the ultimate goal in saving the species, understanding all aspects of the cheetah’s biology and physiology is one of the very important pieces in saving the cheetah for future generations.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Blondi.


DUSTY

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Dusty! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Dusty is still exercised on her lure system for visitors with her pen mates Blondi, Sandy, and Leia. Dusty is the best runner out of the group, running the farthest distance and catching the rag the most often.

Dusty is also the most picky and finicky when it comes to food. When we collect fecal samples, we need to know which cat it belongs to. In order to be certain which cat is responsible for which fecal sample, we put a “marker,” a grain product that cheetahs cannot digest, in a piece of meat and feed it to them. The marker we use for Dusty was split peas, but she decided she doesn’t like it so we had to switch to lentils. Dusty also will only eat donkey meat; when we have giraffe, zebra or kudu that we buy from local game farmers, she turns up her nose at her dish.

From mid-May through mid-August, Dusty has been participating in a groundbreaking study on cheetah reproduction conducted in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, DC. CCF staff and volunteers have been tracking Dusty’s estrus cycle through fecal collection and behavioral observation in order to better understand the reproductive biology in cheetahs of different ages. Dusty is now six years old and considered in the prime of her life. The 11 CCF cheetahs that are a part of this ground breaking study were injected with a series of two hormones 84 hours apart to facilitate follicle growth and then to induce egg formation on the follicles.

Dusty’s first injection was easy, as she was not used to being lured into a squeeze cage. Her second injection was harder, but still manageable.

In order to aspirate her eggs, we needed to anesthetize her. This was a tremendous effort. Eventually, after numerous attempts and “plans” failed, we ended up bringing our goatherd next to the cheetah pens so that we could dart her.

After she was put under anesthesia, the team used ultrasound to see her reproductive organs and then extracted the female’s egg, a task that requires precision timing—right before the female ovulates.

After anesthesia, the team used ultrasound to see her reproductive organs and then extracted the female’s egg, a task that requires precision timing—right before the female ovulates.

Her operation was successful and her eggs in good condition. Her eggs will be fertilized in our lab with sperm from Cruise, our most dominant male. If the process is successful, the team will track the development of the embryos in an incubator and not in the female cheetahs.

This important study is helping develop methods of impregnating the females and thus conserving their invaluable genes. If successful, in the future, it will not only assist the non-reproductive captive cheetahs in the world, but will be available to assist in maintaining the small, fragmented cheetah populations that are in great need of genetic variation. Although saving habitat is the ultimate goal in saving the species, understanding all aspects of the cheetah’s biology and physiology is one of the very important pieces in saving the cheetah for future generations.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Dusty.

SANDY

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Sandy! We’d like to fill you in some of these exciting developments.

Sandy continues to exercise regularly for visitors. She is the fastest runner out of her pen mates Blondi, Dusty, and Leia. In March, we moved our three cubs up near the clinic for visitors to see; that meant that part of the big girls’ pen was sectioned off. Sandy hisses and spits at the cubs who have taken part of her enclosure. She can be seen sitting next to their adjacent fence staring at the intruders.

From mid-May through mid-August, Sandy has been participating in a groundbreaking study on cheetah reproduction conducted in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, DC. CCF staff and volunteers have been tracking Sandy’s estrus cycle through fecal collection and behavioral observation in order to better understand the reproductive biology in cheetahs of different ages. Sandy is now six years old and considered in the prime of her life.

The 11 CCF cheetahs that are a part of this ground breaking study were injected with a series of two hormones 84 hours apart to facilitate follicle growth and then to induce egg formation on the follicles.

She was then put under anesthesia and the team used ultrasound to see her reproductive organs and then extracted her eggs, a task that requires precision timing—right before the female ovulates.

Her collection was successful and her eggs were in very good condition. Her eggs will be fertilized in our lab with sperm from Cruise, our most dominant male. The team is now tracking the development of the embryos in an incubator and not in the female cheetahs. This process is called in vitro fertilization (IVF).

This important study is helping develop methods of impregnating the females and thus conserving their invaluable genes. If successful, in the future, it will not only assist the non-reproductive captive cheetahs in the world, but will be available to assist in maintaining the small, fragmented cheetah populations that are in great need of genetic variation. Although saving habitat is the ultimate goal in saving the species, understanding all aspects of the cheetah’s biology and physiology is one of the very important pieces in saving the cheetah for future generations.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Sandy.


LEIA

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Leia! We’d like to fill you in on the most exciting of these developments.

She continues to exercise regularly for visitors. Despite her age, she has become one of the more consistent runners of the group. She will wait under a bush, lying so low that we almost can’t see her. Then, as the rag speeds by, she jumps out and uses the full ability of her acceleration to catch up to the rag.

From mid-May through mid-August, Shadow has been participating in a groundbreaking study on cheetah reproduction conducted in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, DC. . CCF staff and volunteers have been tracking Leia’s estrus cycle through fecal collection and behavioral observation in order to better understand the reproductive biology in cheetahs of different ages. Leia is an especially important candidate due to her age, now ten years old. The 11 CCF cheetahs that are a part of this ground breaking study were injected with a series of two hormones 84 hours apart to facilitate follicle growth and then to induce egg formation on the follicles. She was then put under anesthesia and the team used ultrasound to see her reproductive organs and then extracted her eggs, a task that requires precision timing—right before the female ovulates.

Her collection was successful and her eggs were in very good condition. Her eggs will be fertilized in our lab with sperm from Cruise, our most dominant male. The team is now tracking the development of the embryos in an incubator and not in the female cheetahs. This process is called in vitro fertilization (IVF). If this process turns out to be successful, it will do wonders for captive breeding of cheetahs.

This important study is helping develop methods of impregnating the females and thus conserving their invaluable genes. If successful, in the future, it will not only assist the non-reproductive captive cheetahs in the world, but will be available to assist in maintaining the small, fragmented cheetah populations that are in great need of genetic variation. Although saving habitat is the ultimate goal in saving the species, understanding all aspects of the cheetah’s biology and physiology is one of the very important pieces in saving the cheetah for future generations.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Leia.

SHADOW

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Shadow! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.
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From mid-May through mid-August, Shadow has been participating in a groundbreaking study on cheetah reproduction conducted in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, DC. CCF staff and volunteers have been tracking Shadow’s estrus cycle through fecal collection and behavioral observation in order to better understand the reproductive biology in cheetahs of different ages. The 11 CCF cheetahs that are a part of this ground breaking study were injected with a series of two hormones 84 hours apart to facilitate follicle growth and then to induce egg formation on the follicles. She was then put under anesthesia and the team used ultrasound to see her reproductive organs and then extracted her eggs, a task that requires precision timing—right before the female ovulates.

Despite Shadow’s eight years of age, she had the best quality eggs out of the 11 CCF cheetahs involved in this study. They were fertilized in our lab with sperm from Cruise, our most dominant male. The team is now tracking the development of the embryos in an incubator and not in the female cheetahs. This process is called in vitro fertilization (IVF). If this process turns out to be successful, it will do wonders for captive breeding of cheetahs.

This important study is helping develop methods of impregnating the females and thus conserving their invaluable genes. If successful, in the future, it will not only assist the non-reproductive captive cheetahs in the world, but will be available to assist in maintaining the small, fragmented cheetah populations that are in great need of genetic variation. Although saving habitat is the ultimate goal in saving the species, understanding all aspects of the cheetah’s biology and physiology is one of the very important pieces in saving the cheetah for future generations.

During the three months of this study, Shadow has been sharing a smaller enclosure with two other solitary cheetahs. The enclosure is small enough so that we can find fecal samples every day and identify which cat it is from. We can identify Shadow’s fecal sample because we feed her meat into which we have stuffed rice. Shadow cannot digest the rice and it comes out whole in her feces. Although Shadow should not be the most dominant of the three cats that she is in with, she usually defecates on the highest spot in the enclosure, something usually reserved for the most dominant cat. We were able to weigh her when she underwent her procedure and she weighed in at 34 kilograms, up from only 29 kilograms six months ago. She seems to be getting bolder and more comfortable not only with us, but with other cats as well.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Shadow.

ELSIE

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Elsie! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

From mid-May through mid-August, Elsie has been participating in a groundbreaking study on cheetah reproduction conducted in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, DC. CCF staff and volunteers have been tracking Elsie’s estrus cycle through fecal collection and behavioral observation in order to better understand the reproductive biology in cheetahs of different ages. The 11 CCF cheetahs that are a part of this ground breaking study were injected with a series of two hormones 84 hours apart to facilitate follicle growth and then to induce egg formation on the follicles. She handled the injections very well. Then she was then put under anesthesia and the team used ultrasound to see her reproductive organs and then extracted her eggs, a task that requires precision timing—right before the female ovulates.

Because of her age (16 years), we did not expect many healthy eggs from her; in fact, she didn’t produce any eggs at all despite the hormones. However, she was still a valued participant because of her age. Not much is known about cheetahs her age so this was a learning experience for everyone. While under anesthesia, we were able to check her thoroughly and saw that despite missing many teeth, the ones she has are very healthy and strong.

This important study is helping develop methods of impregnating the females and thus conserving their invaluable genes. If successful, in the future, it will not only assist the non-reproductive captive cheetahs in the world, but will be available to assist in maintaining the small, fragmented cheetah populations that are in great need of genetic variation. Although saving habitat is the ultimate goal in saving the species, understanding all aspects of the cheetah’s biology and physiology is one of the very important pieces in saving the cheetah for future generations.

During the three months of this study, Elsie has been sharing a smaller enclosure with two other solitary cheetahs, so that we can find fecal samples every day and identify whether or not it belongs to Elsie. She has shown that she can stand her own against the two younger cats. She yelps, almost dog-like, during mealtimes. Sometimes when we call her, she doesn’t know where we are because of the poor vision due to the cataracts. She looks around, knowing that we are calling her, but is not able to find us. Eventually, she locates us and grabs her food aggressively when we toss it to her. She is showing new life and spirit, which is great to see since she is a favorite of many of the staff.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Elsie.

SAMANTHA

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Samantha! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

From mid-May through mid-August, Samantha has been participating in a groundbreaking study on cheetah reproduction conducted in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, DC. CCF staff and volunteers have been tracking Samantha’s estrus cycle through fecal collection and behavioral observation in order to better understand the reproductive biology in cheetahs of different ages. At almost three years of age, Samantha was in the “young group,” the group that would just be starting to have litters of their own in the wild and that would have the best quality eggs. The 11 CCF cheetahs that are a part of this ground breaking study were injected with a series of two hormones 84 hours apart to facilitate follicle growth and then to induce egg formation on the follicles.

She was then put under anesthesia. The team then used ultrasound to see the reproductive organs of the females and then extracted her eggs, a task that requires precision timing—right before the female ovulates.

Her collection was successful and her eggs were in very good condition. Her eggs will be fertilized in our lab with sperm from Cruise, our most dominant male. The team is now tracking the development of the embryos in an incubator and not in the female cheetahs. This process is called in vitro fertilization (IVF).

This important study is helping develop methods of impregnating the females and thus conserving their invaluable genes. If successful, in the future, it will not only assist the non-reproductive captive cheetahs in the world, but will be available to assist in maintaining the small, fragmented cheetah populations that are in great need of genetic variation. Although saving habitat is the ultimate goal in saving the species, understanding all aspects of the cheetah’s biology and physiology is one of the very important pieces in saving the cheetah for future generations.

Samantha and her coalition mates: Tempesta, Cleo, and Luna were been moved out to a smaller enclosure within our 64-hectare enclosure in late March so that fecal collection could be conducted. Once the fecal collections and observations are finished in mid-August, they will be released into the big area. Because there are four of them, we are sure that they will have no problems holding their own against the older females. Samantha lately has been getting bolder and bolder; she is right behind Cleo when feeding time rolls around.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Samantha.

TEMPESTA

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Tempesta! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

From mid-May through mid-August, Tempesta has been participating in a groundbreaking study on cheetah reproduction conducted in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, DC. CCF staff and volunteers have been tracking Tempesta’s estrus cycle through fecal collection and behavioral observation in order to better understand the reproductive biology in cheetahs of different ages. At three years of age, Tempesta was in the “young group,” the group that would just be starting to have litters of their own in the wild and that would have the best quality eggs. The 11 CCF cheetahs that are a part of this ground breaking study were injected with a series of two hormones 84 hours apart to facilitate follicle growth and then to induce egg formation on the follicles.

She was then put under anesthesia. The team then used ultrasound to see the reproductive organs of the females and then extracted her eggs, a task that requires precision timing—right before the female ovulates.

Her collection was successful and her eggs were in very good condition. Her eggs will be fertilized in our lab with sperm from Cruise, our most dominant male. The team is now tracking the development of the embryos in an incubator and not in the female cheetahs. This process is called in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Tempesta and her coalition mates Samantha, Cleo, and Luna were been moved out to a smaller enclosure within our 64 hectare enclosure in late March for fecal collection. Once the fecal collections and observations are finished in mid-August, they will be released into the big area. Because there are four of them, we are sure that they will have no problems holding their own against the older females.

This important study is helping develop methods of impregnating the females and thus conserving their invaluable genes. If successful, in the future, it will not only assist the non-reproductive captive cheetahs in the world, but will be available to assist in maintaining the small, fragmented cheetah populations that are in great need of genetic variation. Although saving habitat is the ultimate goal in saving the species, understanding all aspects of the cheetah’s biology and physiology is one of the very important pieces in saving the cheetah for future generations.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Tempesta.

MISTY

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Misty! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

From mid-May through mid-August, Misty has been participating in a groundbreaking study on cheetah reproduction conducted in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, DC. CCF staff and volunteers have been tracking Misty’s estrus cycle through fecal collection and behavioral observation in order to better understand the reproductive biology in cheetahs of different ages. Estimated to be about eight years old, Misty is in the older group of females. They are an especially important group in the study since not much is known about cheetahs her age. The 11 CCF cheetahs that are a part of this ground breaking study were injected with a series of two hormones 84 hours apart to facilitate follicle growth and then to induce egg formation on the follicles.

She was then put under anesthesia and the team used ultrasound to see the reproductive organs of the females and then extracted the females’ egg, a task that requires precision timing—right before the female ovulates.

Her collection was successful and her eggs were in very good condition. Her eggs will be fertilized in our lab with sperm from Cruise, our most dominant male. The team is now tracking the development of the embryos in an incubator and not in the female cheetahs. This process is called in vitro fertilization (IVF).

This important study is helping develop methods of impregnating the females and thus conserving their invaluable genes. If successful, in the future, it will not only assist the non-reproductive captive cheetahs in the world, but will be available to assist in maintaining the small, fragmented cheetah populations that are in great need of genetic variation. Although saving habitat is the ultimate goal in saving the species, understanding all aspects of the cheetah’s biology and physiology is one of the very important pieces in saving the cheetah for future generations.

During the three months of this study, Misty has been sharing a small enclosure with two other solitary cheetahs. The enclosure is small enough so that we can find fecal samples every day and identify which cat it is from. We can identify Misty’s fecal sample because we feed her meat into which we have stuffed corn. Misty cannot digest the corn and it comes out whole in her feces. Misty is the most dominant and boldest cat of the three and she definitely pushes her weight around. She is the first to come and grab her food, sometimes finishing it so quickly that she manages to steal food from the other girls before they can finish theirs.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Misty.

CLEO

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Cleo! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

From mid-May through mid-August, Cleo has been participating in a groundbreaking study on cheetah reproduction conducted in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, DC. CCF staff and volunteers have been tracking Cleo’s estrus cycle through fecal collection and behavioral observation in order to better understand the reproductive biology in cheetahs of different ages. At just over two years of age, Cleo was in the “young group,” the group that would just be starting to have litters of their own in the wild and that would have the best quality eggs. The 11 CCF cheetahs that are a part of this ground breaking study were injected with a series of two hormones 84 hours apart to facilitate follicle growth and then to induce egg formation on the follicles.

She was then put under anesthesia and the team used ultrasound to see the reproductive organs of the females and then extracted the females’ egg, a task that requires precision timing—right before the female ovulates.

Her collection was successful and her eggs were in very good condition. Her eggs will be fertilized in our lab with sperm from Cruise, our most dominant male. The team is now tracking the development of the embryos in an incubator and not in the female cheetahs. This process is called in vitro fertilization (IVF).

This important study is helping develop methods of impregnating the females and thus conserving their invaluable genes. If successful, in the future, it will not only assist the non-reproductive captive cheetahs in the world, but will be available to assist in maintaining the small, fragmented cheetah populations that are in great need of genetic variation. Although saving habitat is the ultimate goal in saving the species, understanding all aspects of the cheetah’s biology and physiology is one of the very important pieces in saving the cheetah for future generations.

Cleo and her coalition mates Tempesta, Samantha, and Luna were been moved out to a smaller enclosure within our 64-hectare enclosure in late March for fecal collection. Once the fecal collections and observations are finished in mid-August, they will be released into the big area. Because there are four of them, we are sure that they will have no problems holding their own against the older females. Despite being the second youngest in the coalition, she is definitely the boldest and most dominant. She is always in the front when we feed, chirping like a cub and crouched down ready to grab the first piece of meat.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Cleo.

OHANA-LUNA

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Ohana-Luna! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

From mid-May through mid-August, Luna has been participating in a groundbreaking study on cheetah reproduction conducted in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution of Washington, DC. CCF staff and volunteers have been tracking Luna’s estrus cycle through fecal collection and behavioral observation in order to better understand the reproductive biology in cheetahs of different ages. At almost two years of age, Luna was in the “young group,” the group that would just be starting to have litters of their own in the wild and that would have the best quality eggs. The 11 CCF cheetahs that are a part of this ground breaking study were injected with a series of two hormones 84 hours apart to facilitate follicle growth and then to induce egg formation on the follicles.

She was then put under anesthesia and the team used ultrasound to see the reproductive organs of the females and then extracted the females’ egg, a task that requires precision timing—right before the female ovulates.

Her collection was successful and her eggs were in very good condition. Her eggs will be fertilized in our lab with sperm from Cruise, our most dominant male. The team is now tracking the development of the embryos in an incubator and not in the female cheetahs. This process is called in vitro fertilization (IVF).

This important study is helping develop methods of impregnating the females and thus conserving their invaluable genes. If successful, in the future, it will not only assist the non-reproductive captive cheetahs in the world, but will be available to assist in maintaining the small, fragmented cheetah populations that are in great need of genetic variation. Although saving habitat is the ultimate goal in saving the species, understanding all aspects of the cheetah’s biology and physiology is one of the very important pieces in saving the cheetah for future generations.

Luna and her coalition mates Tempesta, Samantha, and Cleo were been moved out to a small enclosure within our 64-hectare enclosure in late March. Once the fecal collections and observations are finished in mid-August, they will be released into the big area. As the youngest member of her coalition, she seems to be the most timid as well. However, she has gained the most weight among the four, which leads us to assume that she might be one of the bolder ones and is stealing meat from the other cats after she finishes hers. Because there are four of them, we are sure that they will have no problems holding their own against the older females.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Luna.





ORION

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Orion! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Orion lives in an enclosure with his brother, Saturn, and three other orphan male cheetahs, known as “the three musketeers.”

Orion is growing and filling out nicely. At two years of age, he and his brother would be starting to separate from their family and would be pushed away by dominant males. However, being in a pen adjacent to our most dominant cheetah, Cruise, doesn’t seem to have an effect on Orion. In fact, Orion is getting to be bolder, rushing up to the fence with his head low and tail between his legs and sort of hopping/galloping towards us. When he is a few meters away, he grinds to a halt, slaps the ground with his front paws and spits. It is definitely a fearsome image. When we come around to check the fence line before feeding, Orion and his pen mates are all sitting on a hill, as if waiting for us to come around so that they can make their way to the feeding enclosure. By the time we get around to the entrance of the feeding area, they are all there, waiting not so patiently for us to feed them.

He also reprimands the younger cats in his enclosure. When they are waiting to be let into their feeding area and one of them gets too close, he slaps them as if to warn them that he has seniority and they have to wait for their turn. When the guillotine door is opened for feeding, he is the first one through, grabbing his meat from the bowl and rushing off to eat.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Orion.

SATURN

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Saturn! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Saturn lives in an enclosure with his brother, Orion, and three other orphan male cheetahs, known as “the three musketeers.”

Saturn is growing and filling out nicely. At two years of age, he and his brother would be starting to separate from his family and would be pushed away by dominant males. However, being in a pen adjacent to our most dominant cheetah, Cruise, doesn’t seem to have an effect on Saturn.

When we come around to check the fence line before feeding, Saturn and his pen mates are all sitting on a hill, as if waiting for us to come around so that they can make their way to the feeding enclosure. By the time we get around to the entrance of the feeding area, they are all there, waiting not so patiently for us to feed them.

Saturn is also getting to be very bold, rushing up the fence with his head down and tail between his legs and sort of hopping/galloping towards us. When he is a few meters away, he grinds to a halt, slaps the ground with his front paws and spits. It is definitely a fearsome image. He also reprimands the younger cats in his enclosure. When they are waiting to be let into their feeding and one of them gets too close, he slaps them as if to warn them that he has seniority and that they have to wait for their turn. When the guillotine door is opened for feeding, he is one of the first ones through, grabbing his meat from the bowl and rushing off to eat.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Saturn.

D’ARTAGNAN

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about D’Artagnan! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

D’Artagnan lives with his two brothers (they are called the three musketeers) and two other males of similar age, Saturn and Orion.

Two months shy of two years, D’Artagnan is growing up to be a healthy cheetah. He is still growing and will still continue to muscle up quite a bit more. Although he is next to our most dominant cheetah, Cruise, D’Artagnan doesn’t seem to be scared or nervous. When we come around to check the fence line before feeding, D’Artagnan and his pen mates are all sitting on a hill, as if waiting for us to come around so that they can make their way to the feeding enclosure. By the time we get around to the entrance of the feeding area, they are all there, waiting not so patiently for us to feed them. D’Artagnan and his brothers still make the low growling sound; it seems as though he doesn’t take a breath, the sound is so constant.

As the second boldest among his brothers, he is right up there with Porthos, Saturn, and Orion during meal times, trying to get the best spot so that when the guillotine door opens, he can rush in as fast as possible. However, sometimes he gets too close, and Saturn or Orion hiss and spit at him. This is just part of the growing and learning process for a young male cheetah.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support D’Artagnan.

PORTHOS

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Porthos! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Porthos lives with his two brothers (they are called “the three musketeers”) and two other males of similar age, Saturn and Orion.

Two months shy of two years, Porthos is growing up to be a healthy cheetah. Although he is next to our most dominant cheetah, Cruise, Porthos doesn’t seem to be scared or nervous. When we come around to check the fence line before feeding, Porthos and his pen mates are all sitting on the hill adjacent to Cruise’s enclosure, as if waiting for us to come around so that they can make their way to the feeding enclosure. By the time we get around to the entrance of the feeding area, they are all there, waiting not so patiently for us to feed them.

As the boldest among his brothers, he is right up there with Saturn and Orion during meal times, trying to get the best spot so that when the guillotine door opens, he can rush in as fast as possible. He is usually the second one in, behind only Orion. However, sometimes he gets too close and Saturn or Orion give him a good slap on the head, just to remind him who is in charge.
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We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Porthos.

ATHOS

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Athos! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Athos lives with his two brothers (they are called “the three musketeers”) and two other males of similar age, Saturn and Orion.

Two months shy of two years, Athos is growing up to be a healthy cheetah. Although he is next to our most dominant cheetah, Cruise, Athos doesn’t seem to be scared or nervous of him. When we come around to check the fence line before feeding, Athos and his pen mates are all sitting on the hill adjacent to Cruise’s enclosure, as if waiting for us to come around so that they can make their way to the feeding enclosure. By the time we get around to the entrance of the feeding area, they are all there, waiting not so patiently for us to feed them.

As the most timid among his brothers and pen mates, he keeps his distance from us, coming no closer than about 10 meters, even during feeding times. When the guillotine door is opened, he is the last one in and only after he makes sure that we are nowhere near the fence line closest to the guillotine. When he gets to the bowls, they're all empty except for one and it is usually the one closest to the fence, and therefore us. He takes his time checking each bowl, actually looking up at us while creeping toward each bowl. When he finally reaches the bowl with the piece of meat left in it, he gives a growl as he grabs it, sometimes rushing too much and not actually managing to grab the meat. However, he eventually gets is and runs off to enjoy his meal in peace.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Athos.

RON

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Ron! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Since your last update, Ron has visited the dentist again. He has had a chronic sore on his cheek and we continue to try to find the cause of the problem. Although his last visit to the dentist in February showed no problems with his teeth, this time we found that indeed he does have a problem with his molar. It appears that his molar is dead and will have to be removed in the near future. We are now making arrangements for this, as he will need to go into our local village (45 minutes away from our Centre) and visit the people dentist, who has the appropriate equipment for the extraction. Poor Ron; however, his tooth does not seem to be bothering his attitude or his appetite.

Ron and his two sisters (Harry and Hermione) have been moved so that they are on display to visitors. During June and July, a volunteer worked and played with the three every day to continue their socialization process and keep them used to human presence. Part of this play involved getting Ron up onto a play tree. The first week was a bit difficult but Ron learned very quickly and now, he climbs onto his play tree without even a piece of meat to lure him.

Ron and his sisters are next to four older females who don’t seem to like his presence, while Ron seems to be amused by the hissing and spitting aimed at him. He will sit next to them at the fence with a calm expression while the older females try to scare him away.

We have also started Ron and his sisters on our mechanical lure system to exercise them and to show visitors their speed and agility. Although Ron is not the most consistent or attentive runner, he is far faster than his sisters when he chooses to run. When they are not running and the four older females are, the three cubs will run back and forth along the fence in excitement. Ron in particular makes such a racket brushing along the fence that the older girls sometimes stop running and look in his direction to see what all the noise is about.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Ron.

HARRY

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Harry! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Since your last update, Harry and her siblings (Ron and Hermione) have been moved so that they are on display to visitors. During June and July, a volunteer worked and played with the three every day to continue their socialization process and keep them used to human presence. Part of this play involved getting Harry up onto a play tree. Since Harry is the most timid of the three around people, we thought it would be a difficult task. However, she climbs readily onto the tree for her piece of meat. She is still the most wary and will hiss frequently, but she always comes close enough to take her reward. Now, she runs ahead of us to the tree and jumps up, ready for her reward.

Although she is timid toward us, she is very bold towards her siblings. At meal times, she will defend her food by growling and slapping at Ron when he tries to grab her piece.

We have also started Harry and her siblings on our mechanical lure system to exercise them and to show visitors their speed and agility. Harry is the most consistent and enthusiastic runner of the three. She will make usually two whole loops around the track before she flops down to rest, whereas her siblings will maybe run one loop. Even when she is very tired and breathing heavily, she will jump up and run after the lure if it comes by her. When they are not running and the four older females adjacent to them are, Harry and her siblings will run back and forth along the fence in excitement. They make such a racket brushing along the fence that the older girls sometimes stop running and look in their direction to see what all the noise is about.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Harry.

HERMIONE

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Hermione! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.
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Since your last update, Hermione and her siblings (Ron and Harry) have been moved so that they are on display to visitors. During June and July, a volunteer worked and played with the three every day to continue their socialization process and keep them used to human presence. Hermione is the most comfortable around people and this is very evident when we sit and socialize them. Hermione is usually the first one to come up and lay down for her treat. She has also started purring occasionally during this socializing period. We also asked Hermione and her siblings to climb onto a play tree as part of their learning process in obeying our commands. Again, she is usually one of the first up onto the tree even when we first started. Now, she knows the drill and climbs the play tree eagerly.

We have also started Hermione and her siblings on the mechanical lure system to exercise them and to show visitors their speed and agility. Hermione is the most eager of the three to run. When we are setting up the lure system and nailing the starter motor into the ground, she will come right up to us, ready to run. If the rag happens to be near the motor, she will grab the rag, even if we haven’t started! However, she is the quickest to learn to give up the rag for a meat reward and the most comfortable around visitors. She also seems to be a favorite among guests because of her dark face.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Hermione.


MAFATI

Mafati is one of our newest cheetahs. He arrived on June 1st with his brother and sister after being caught on a farm 35 kilometers outside of Otjiwarongo. They had killed a sheep inside the kraal and dragged it outside to eat. That, and the fact that they were estimated to be only about 12 months old, was the reason why we decided that they could not survive outside of captivity. Unfortunately, his sister died a month and a half after their capture. The reason for her death is still unknown, although our veterinarian did a complete workup.

Mafati is bigger and darker than his brother. Because they have been used to humans for less than two months, they are still very skittish when we come in to feed them. Usually, they stay in the corner farthest away from wherever we happen to be. However, if we get too close, Mafati puts on a display that would scare just about anyone. He hunches his back, tucks his tail under his body, and rushes at us, stopping about 5 meters away with a fierce hiss and spit. Then he stands with his back legs splayed out and his front legs close together, head down, tail under his body glaring at us. It seems that he has taken it upon himself to protect his smaller brother; in that regard he is doing a very good job.

MAKATI

Makati is one of our newest cheetahs. He arrived on June 1st with his brother and sister after being caught on a farm 35 kilometers outside of Otjiwarongo. They had killed a sheep inside the kraal and dragged it outside to eat. That and the fact that they were estimated to be only about 14 months old were the reasons why we decided that they could not survive outside of captivity. Unfortunately, his sister died a month and a half after their capture. The reason for her death is still unknown, although our veterinarian did a complete workup.

Makati is smaller and darker than his brother. When Mafati is doing his thing trying to scare us away, Makati is sitting in the corner, staring at us. Recently, he has started joining Mafati in his scare tactics. For the most part though, he is content to let his bigger brother play protector while he just lies there.

AMANI

Amani was brought to CCF in mid-June. A lodge near Windhoek acquired her when she was one year old in 2005 as a companion for their tame cheetahs. However, the two did not get along and Amani was brought to us.

At two years old, she is still young enough that we are able to introduce her to our four other young females in the hopes that they form an age-group friendship, like a female coalition. During the month that she has been with us, she has grown more and more comfortable with our presence. She has started taking her meat out of the dish when we are right there, which shows a very high level of comfort. She also has an adorable habit of pacing around with just the tip of her tongue sticking out of her mouth. She is now in Bellebeno, a 64-hectare enclosure, getting used to the four younger females and progressing nicely. We think that she will enjoy being in that enclosure.

JOSIE

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Josie! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Josie is still in his big 2.5-hectare enclosure with his coalition mate Gremlin. He has had some new neighbors in the past few months, in addition to Klein and Merlot. In late May, we picked up three 14-month old cubs from outside of Otjiwarongo, two males and one female. Then in mid-June, we received a two-year-old female from a lodge outside of Windhoek. Josie can often be seen in his feeding enclosure even when it is not feeding time; he seems very interested in the two new females.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Gremlin.

GREMLIN

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Gremlin! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Gremlin is still in his big 2.5-hectare enclosure with his coalition mate Josie. He has had some new neighbors in the past few months, in addition to Klein and Merlot. In late May, we picked up three 14-month old cubs from outside of Otjiwarongo, two males and one female. Then in mid-June, we received a two-year-old female from a lodge outside of Windhoek. Gremlin can often be seen in his feeding enclosure even when it is not feeding time; he seems very interested in the two new females.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Gremlin.

KLEIN

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Klein! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Klein is still sharing his 2.5-hectare pen with his coalition mate Merlot. It seems as though he enjoys scaring new volunteers. He hides behind the shade cloth so we can’t see him and jumps out and spits, sort of an initiation for new volunteers. When the guillotine door is opened for them to come and eat, he and Merlot race the few meters to their food dishes. Klein grabs his piece of meat, jogs a lap around the feeding pen with food in mouth, and then goes back to the food dishes, usually to Merlot’s. If there happens to be more than one piece of meat in the dish, he gets his own plus Merlot’s. He is definitely not going hungry! He is a consistent favorite among the volunteers because of his size and aggressive nature.

When we drive up to feed him, he is always waiting in his feeding enclosure; he hears the bakkie (pick-up truck) coming and knows that it is time to eat. When he is not eating, he is always at the other end of the enclosure. That is because three of our females were relocated to that area for a study done in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institute. The study involved giving the females hormones to simulate being in heat, so during that time, Klein was very interested in the new scents just meters away.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Klein.

MERLOT

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Merlot! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Merlot is still sharing his 2.5-hectare pen with his coalition mate Klein. When we drive up to feed him, he is always waiting in his feeding enclosure; he hears the bakkie (pick-up truck) coming and knows that it is time to eat. When he is not eating, he is always at the other end of the enclosure. That is because three of our females were relocated to that area for a study done in conjunction with the Smithsonian Institute. The study involved giving the females hormones to simulate being in heat, so during that time, Merlot was very interested in the new scents just meters away.

When the guillotine door is opened for them to come and eat, he and Klein race the few meters to their food dishes. Merlot grabs his piece of meat, jogs around the shed and sits down to enjoy his meal in the dirt. If there happens to be more than one piece of meat in the dish, he quickly eats the piece he has and goes back to eat the rest of his food. Volunteers always comment that he is probably the most beautiful cat at CCF.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Merlot.

CRUISE

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Cruise! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Cruise has had a busy six months. In February, he was still in the silver pens located next to our big boys Josie, Gremlin, Klein, and Merlot. In late March, we moved four young girls to our big 64-hectare enclosure. Their pen became available, and we moved Cruise to that pen, which is adjacent to his old one. He was like a new cheetah. He no longer meowed his sad cry and he had room to run around. In fact, he started running after the bakkie (pick-up truck) again as we did fence checks. He also had lots of new and interesting smells, especially that of the four previous female residents. His neighbors are five young males and they seem to get along great. There is no hissing and spitting at each other.

In early July, Cruise, being our most dominant male, was chosen as a sperm donor for a project being conducted in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution. His sperm will be used to fertilize eggs aspirated from 11 of our females in hopes to improve captive breeding of cheetahs worldwide. Since Cruise is at the ripe old age of eight, we had one of our other cheetahs ready to donate sperm as well; however, Cruise not only had very good quality sperm, he had enough to inseminate all the eggs from all our females! He has been doing well since the donation and the move back to his old enclosure.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Cruise.

NINA

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Nina! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Nina and her coalition mate Solo are still in the 64-hectare enclosure at Bellebeno. They are the most dominant group there, so they tend to take advantage of that. They are always waiting for us at the gate when we drive up. When we open the gate to drive into the enclosure, Nina is always right there, almost asking us to hurry up so that she can get her piece of food. Sometimes, Nina waits right in front of the gate so that we cannot physically open the gate; she needs to be shooed away so the gate can swing open. When we start driving, Nina is always right behind the bakkie (pick-up truck), sometimes as close as 3 meters. Now six and a half years old, Nina is beginning to hit middle age but is still considered in the prime of her life.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Nina.

SOLO

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Solo! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Solo and her coalition mate Nina are still in the 64-hectare enclosure in Bellebeno. They are the most dominant coalition there so they tend to take advantage of that. They are always waiting for us at the gate when we drive up. When we start moving, Solo is right at the back bumper. As we make the turn, she has started to run ahead so that can cross in front of the bakkie (pick-up truck) and get along the other side. Then, she actually runs even with the bakkie, not chasing it but more like racing it. She puts her ears flat, tail parallel to the ground, and moves smoothly down the road, with seemingly no effort. It is definitely evident that she just plain loves to run, whether or not she is being fed. If we drive by the enclosure for some other purpose after they have been fed, Solo will run along the fence line as if she is just out for an afternoon jog.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Solo.

CHANEL

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Chanel! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Chanel is still living in the 64-hectare enclosure at Bellebeno. Although she is solitary, she has started coming to the bakkie (pick-up truck) with Nina and Solo, the most dominant coalition. Usually though, she comes when the Chocolate Girls (Toblerone, Nestle and Hershey) come, but always by herself, not actually with them. At just over six years of age, she is in the prime of her life. As the most aggressive and dominant cat in Bellebeno, the other cats give her a decent berth. Sometimes though, she backs down to some of the other girls if they hiss or spit at her. She will turn and show her back end, as if to say, “I’m sorry.” However, when the first piece of meat is tossed, she always grabs it first.

Chanel has developed a habit recently of actually popping out of the bush. When we are driving by, she will lie in a stalking position and jump up and run after we pass her. When we are stopped and waiting for her to show up, we can hear the bush and grass rustling, but it seems to be coming from every direction. It gets louder and louder until she hurtles herself out of the bush towards us. It is a bit of a fright because we don’t know which direction to be looking, but luckily we are in the back of a bakkie enclosed by railings. She is a very impressive cat and always a favorite among the volunteers.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Chanel.

SHIRAZ

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Shiraz and her cubs! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Since Shiraz’s release into our game camp in early February, she has walked quite a bit. About four and a half months later, she escaped our game camp and made it to our 1,400-hectare savannah, 10 kilometers away. While she was there, she made her first kill, a red hartebeest, one of the fastest antelopes in this area. A few weeks after that, she was seen trying to hunt a warthog; however, she and her male cub, Nehale, suffered injuries and had to be anesthetized and stitched up. Since that time, she had wandered off onto our neighbors’ lands and the decision was made to bring her back into captivity on the 25th of June.

However, on the 29th, we transported her to a 65,000-hectare game park called Erindi. It is totally electric fenced and she is protected from hunters. They also have an abundance of springbok, wildebeest, oryx, kudu, steenbok, duiker, and warthog; all natural prey choices. We think that she will be better off in a bigger area that is definitely escape proof and that she will have more chances and opportunities to hunt and teach her cubs how to hunt. An hour and a half after her release, we were proven right. We tracked her and found her on a steenbok kill! It must have been a very recent kill because when we found her, she was still resting from the chase while her cubs were eating their fill.

Since then, she has stayed close to the area where she was released; this is great since there is a nice waterhole with a good concentration of game. Marianne, one of our cheetah caretakers, has been keeping tabs on her and going to Erindi to track her as well as to train staff there on how to track. A good piece of news was received on one of her visits: Shiraz managed to hunt and kill a full-grown male springbok. This is another sign that Erindi is the right place for Shiraz and her cubs so that they can have the best future possible. Nehale is growing up to be a big male and he will make Shiraz, a bigger-than-average female, a very proud mother. His sisters Omukumu, Linyante, and Sheya are all growing big and fast as well. Within six to ten months, they will all separate and have families of their own.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Shiraz and her cubs.

TOBLERONE

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Toblerone! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Toblerone is still in the 64-hectare enclosure at Bellebeno with her sisters Hershey and Nestle. They occupy the corner opposite the entrance of the enclosure, so they are the last group of cats to be fed. Toblerone, being the boldest of the group, always shows up first with that inquisitive look on her dark face. She is also the best runner of her sisters, staying close to the bakkie (pick-up truck). If we are too far ahead, she will slow down, but as soon as we throw the first piece of meat, she sprints full speed towards the bakkie.

We are in the process of introducing five younger females into the group at Bellebeno. They are between two and three years old. At four years old, we think that Toblerone and her sisters will enjoy the company of younger cheetahs.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Toblerone.

HERSHEY

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Hershey! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Hershey is still in the 64-hectare enclosure at Bellebeno with her sisters Toblerone and Nestle. They occupy the corner opposite the entrance of the enclosure, so they are the last group of cats to be fed. Hershey is the most timid of her sisters and it shows when they come to the bakkie (pick-up truck). Toblerone runs, Nestle jogs, and Hershey walks. When she is about 20 meters away, she will slow down even more and almost creep towards us, with her head low so that she is looking up at us through the tops of her eyes. When we feed her, she is still very cautious, staying low to the ground and looking up at us while trying to grab her food. As timid as she is though, it seems that she is perhaps the most adventurous and fun loving. She seems to love to hunt guinea fowl. There isn’t much, if any, meat for a cheetah on a guinea fowl, so it can only be just to have fun. One time, she came to the bakkie with a guinea fowl in her mouth. Once she saw us though, she dropped the bird and started running after us, knowing that we probably had more and tastier meat to offer.

We are in the process of introducing five younger females into the group at Bellebeno. They are between two and three years old. At four years old, we think that Hershey and her sisters will enjoy the company of younger cheetahs.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Hershey.

NESTLE

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Nestle! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Nestle is still in the 64-hectare enclosure at Bellebeno with her sisters Hershey and Toblerone. They occupy the corner opposite the entrance of the enclosure, so they are the last group of cats to be fed. Nestle is not as bold as Toblerone, but she will still come fairly close to the bakkie (pick-up truck). She is starting to be a better runner, keeping up with Toblerone at times. However, she is smarter, or lazier, than Toblerone and Hershey; she will cut the corner very wide instead of following right behind the bakkie around the whole corner. That way, she ends up ahead, and closer, to us when we start feeding.

We are in the process of introducing five younger females into the group at Bellebeno. They are between two and three years old. At four years old, we think that Nestle and her sisters will enjoy the company of younger cheetahs.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Nestle.

ROSY

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Rosy! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments.

Rosy is still in the 64-hectare enclosure with 12 other females. She and Daisy still occupy the section of land between the entrance and the 1-hectare enclosure. Most times though, they will be at the entrance when we drive up; it seems as though they can hear the car from kilometers away. However, with Nina and Solo there as well, Rosie tends to hang back and wait patiently. When the bakkie (pick-up truck) starts moving, Rosie jumps up and is very eager to run behind us. After she is tossed her piece of meat, she runs off to eat. However, if we linger and wait for some of the other cheetahs to come around, she is always the first to return, looking for second helpings.

At four and a half years of age, Rosy is in the prime of her life. The Chocolate Girls (Nestle, Hershey and Toblerone) are about the same age and Rosy can sometimes be found with them. They seem to enjoy each other’s company.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Rosy.

DAISY

So much has happened in the six-month period since your last update about Daisy! We’d like to fill you in on the some of these exciting developments

Daisy is still in the 64-hectare enclosure with 12 other females. She and Rosy still occupy the section of land between the entrance and the 1-hectare enclosure. Most times though, they will be at the entrance when we drive up; it seems as though they can hear the car from kilometers away. However, with Nina and Solo there as well, Daisy tends to hang back and wait patiently. Daisy is still the most vocal in Bellebeno, and chirps and meows away while waiting to be fed. When the bakkie (pick-up truck) starts moving, Daisy jumps up and is very eager to run behind us. After she is tossed her piece of meat, she runs off to eat.

At four and a half years of age, Rosy is in the prime of her life. The Chocolate Girls (Nestle, Hershey and Toblerone) are about the same age and Rosy can sometimes be found with them. They seem to enjoy each other’s company.

We would like to thank you again for choosing to support Daisy.

Read Laurie Marker's Report from Ethiopia

In November 2005, CCF representatives were able to coordinate a group of Ethiopian officials and concerned individuals helped by representatives in the US Embassy in Addis, the US military unit, and the Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Programme to rescue two cheetah cubs in south eastern Ethiopia and transport the cubs from Gode to Addis Ababa.

CCF was asked to find the funding to assist in the building of a new facility to house these two cheetah cubs as well as to support their long-term annual care, including food and veterinary care. It was then decided that CCF needed to assess the situation and see what could be done to assist and facilitate this process.

By the end of May 2006, with the support of the Born Free Foundation, a trip was planned for the 15-19th of June. A full report has now been posted on our web site. Click here to view, or right-click to download, the report.

Hope you enjoy and greetings from Namibia!

Laurie

Quick Update from Namibia

Hi Cheetah Friends:

Just wanted you to know that we had a litter of 10 puppies born today to our female Tylee – so, we are very pleased. Also, we just finished working on a big male cheetah that will be released tomorrow morning.

We started all our strip counts today and will go into our 24-hour full moon waterhole count on Wednesday. This is always exciting because our Centre becomes a hive of activity with so many people helping with the count!

On the visitors front, our new Earthwatch team arrived yesterday. The Earth Expeditions group also visiting is in Etosha today.

OK, just wanted to fill you all in our a few exciting things.

Laurie

Laurie's parents visit CCF

Laurie's parents spent a few days visiting with us at CCF. Below is an e-mail that Laurie's mom sent to her friends. We decided to post it here to give everyone an idea of how many things are always happening at CCF!

Dear Famiy and Friends,

We are enjoying our time here at the Cheetah Conservation Fund.

There are people here from all over the world. Volunteers from U.K. Scotland, The Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland, Switzerland, U.S, Spain, Mexico. There is a group of Earthwatch volunteers here and one of them is from Cupertino, Ca.

There was a family from San Francisco here. They had 2 children and a friend of their son's, who lives in Switzerland. A very nice family. The children were so interested in what was going on. They won the Audi that CCF raffled off last year, and then donated it back to CCF. It was very interesting talking to them.

There is a delegation from the WWF (World Wildlife Fund) who do lobbying on environmental issues to Congress.

A film crew from the BBC (British Broadcasting Station) is also here. They are producing a film for their T.V.

A group of scientists from the Smithsonian's National Zoo. We were priviledged to watch a procedure on one of the cheetahs. They used ultrasound to examine the entire insides and then measured and proceeded to enter the ovaries with a small needle and extract the eggs. They are doing research on fetilization. This is the same group that did the work on the Pandas from Washington. I was so pleased to be able to watch the entire procedure. They are so exact and good at their profession.

One of the veterinarians is from Sebastapol, Ca., even though she works with the Washington, D.C. group. They gave a very interersting power point presentation of their work in China. The Smithsonian group keeps thier own vehicle here, so I guess different scientists come and go from the National Zoo.

Saturday, there was a busload of school children about 12 years old from St. Paul's Academy in Windhoek (the capital city here). They were camping and some of the parents and teachers were with them. They wore very nice royal blue uniforms, and were very well behaved.

Yesterday, Sunday, we had a picnic in the bush near a water hole. We sat out under a tree and watched the animals come to drink. There was a herd of zebra, warthogs, heartebeests, kudus, Oryx, ostrich, aardvark, porcupine. We did not see any giraffe, but they are here on the farms as the Earthwatch visitors said they saw a lot of them. Lots of pretty birds that I am learning the names of. Of course we see the cheetahs right out of the office window. There is a young one named Kunini (which means little one) that Laurie plays with each day. She is very cute. She had been mistreated, so it is nice to see her gaining confidence in Laurie.

It is winter here. However the sun is out every day and it warms up quite a bit by noon. If it is not too windy, we open the house and let some warm air in. We sleep under a wool blanket and a down comforter to give you an idea of how chilly it gets. We wear a jacket most of the time even in the house, as it is colder in that out duing the day.

This week it has been unseasonably warm and we are enjoying the milder weather. I hope it doesn't turn cold again, but it probably will, as I remember last August having some cold weather.

Thank you for your e-mails giving us news of happenings in your lives.

Marline and Ralph

Update from Laurie

Since my return from the US in May, I have been trying to catch up with everything. We continue to have busy to busier days here – with so much going on.

In early June we watched as Shiraz, who is the one that had the four cubs and was released in Bellebeno in January – made her first hunt. She hadn't been hunting!! She has moved into the Big Field, so it was very exciting! It's wonderful to go into the Field and see cheetahs living free.

Around the same time we picked up three captured cheetahs – but unfortunately they are too young to go out into the wild. Also, Kanini is doing very well - and since I got back she has re-bonded so strongly with me, and she is so smart! She still loves Chewbaaka – who is also doing well.

Back from Ethiopia

I just got back from Ethiopia and I did see the remaining cub. Patch, the one eyed cub, passed away about 2 weeks before I had arrived – although there was a bit of a necropsy, there were no definitive findings as to why the cub had died. He had been doing well, I was told. The other cub, Scout, was there and I did meet him. Both cats were males, originally they thought that Scout was a female – but he is certainly a male!

I did take a photo of the cub – unfortunately, although he is not skinny, he is suffering from a nutritional deficiency and he has bad legs, so we are looking now at our options as to how to get x-rays, how we might go about surgery there in Addis – with no real animal clinic.

The cub is very sweet – he goes out every day with his keepers in the gardens, and he is very gentle and likes to be petted. We spent quite a bit of time with him and I was able to teach the caretakers more about how to best handle the cheetah and care for it. The cage is small, however it was clean – so I was pleased with that.

We went to where we plan to help build a new pen for the cub – this will be a fairly large area, with grass, and fallen trees for Scout to climb and play on. The US Ambassador has adopted Scout and will be going to the Palace weekly to see how the cub is doing. She and other members of the US Embassy will be helping to build Scout a new cage.

But, we also have 40 orphan cheetahs in Namibia that we need to care for long-term so please visit our web page at http://www.cheetah.org/?nd=53 to help us care for these cheetahs that are not luckily enough to live in the wild.

Until next time,

Laurie Marker

Another orphan cheetah at CCF

We have a new orphan cub. We have named her Kunini (which means little one) – she is tiny although about 6 months of age. We think that she had been fed cat food, as when she came in she was just starved – and is still ravenous around food. She is cute, cute, cute! We’ll keep you posted on how she is getting along.

Cheetah Update: General

Beginning in January (December in the case of the Three Musketeers), all the CCF resident cheetahs underwent their annual health examination, performed by our Veterinarian, Dr. Arthur Bagot-Smith.

These health checks are part of the Namibian permit requirements and also give us the opportunity to check on the health of our cheetahs. During the exam, each cheetah undergoes a clinical examination, from head to tail to ensure all joints are working and internal organs, such as the kidneys feel normal. They are also checked for external parasites, treated if necessary and vaccinated for feline distemper and rabies. Blood is also collected and these samples are screened for viruses and overall health to make sure that all organs, such as the liver, are functioning well.

In addition, each cheetah is endoscoped. This particular procedure forms part of a long-term research project to monitor the possible development of a disease called gastritis and the helicobacter that is associated with it. Gastritis is one of the diseases that plague captive cheetahs around the world, while the free-ranging cheetahs seem not to suffer from this debilitating disease. By monitoring the cheetahs that arrive at CCF and are unable to be released, we are able to see if they develop the disease after a period of time in captivity.

It is possible that stress is one of the causative agents in this disease, possibly affected by factors such as exposure to humans, pen size, exercise levels and diet. Our cheetahs have relatively low exposure to humans, live in large enclosures, get lots of exercise and are on an unprocessed meat and bone diet, all of which really seem to agree with them, as they are in excellent health.

Cheetah Update: Gryffindor Cubs

The Gryffindor Cubs have not yet been at CCF for 6 months, so no update is available yet.

Ron
Ron is named after one of the characters in the popular books by J.K. Rowling and although he appears to be the most aggressive, he is the most gentle of the three siblings, so long as there is a meat treat involved. He is the most dominant, and often chases his sisters around the pen for play, preferring to chase them than chasing lures. He is highly food-motivated and will approach anyone with treats. Ron is the most gentle during feedings and loves to lick your hand for a while after the food is gone. He is the largest of the three and the lightest in colour. Ron's distinguishing marks are his kinked tail and almond-shaped eyes, which are a very light amber colour. He has a very laid-back personality and is very well behaved. He tends to be the favourite of visitors because of his gentle nature and likes to have his ears scratched.

Harry
Harry is named after J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter character, because when “she” arrived she had a small lightning-bolt-shaped scratch under her right eye. She is very shy around people and will wait until her siblings, Ron and Hermione, approach people before joining in the fun. Her favourite toy is an old t-shirt tied to a string and she is the fastest of the three siblings when playing. Harry is very golden in colour with dark eyes and is only slightly smaller than her brother, Ron. She is incredibly observant, and will watch you as you walk around the pen. When an animal such as a mouse, tortoise or lizard, etc. is found in the pen, she will be the first to investigate.

Hermione
Hermione is named after one of the characters in the popular books by J.K. Rowling and is the smallest and darkest of the three siblings...and the most playful. She has a small teddy bear face and big dark eyes, by far the cutest of the three. She is very gentle by nature, but not as much as her brother Ron. She tends to follow Ron's lead during feeding. Hermione is the most social and will chase her brother and sister around the pen even though she is much smaller. She is an instigator, but able to hold her own. Hermione is also very food-motivated and will lie in your lap during feeding. She also loves to lick your fingers after feeding. Her favourite scratch spot is behind her ears and neck.

Cheetah Update: Athos

From your last update on Athos, we’d like to tell you a bit more about him and what he has been doing over the past six-month period.

As you know, the "Three Musketeers" were about eight months old when they arrived at CCF after their mother, one sibling and two other adults were shot. The three cubs are inseparable, and it was inevitable they would become named after the brave fictional musketeer characters: Athos, Porthos, and D'Artagnan.

Athos puts up a brave and entertaining show at feeding time. Naturally shy, he puts on a fierce face. With a fuzzy little growl, he tries to convince you he's not intimidated at all.

Cheetah Update: Porthos

From your last update on Porthos, we’d like to tell you a bit more about him and what he has been doing over the past six-month period.

As you know, the "Three Musketeers" were about eight months old when they arrived at CCF after their mother, one sibling and two other adults were shot. The three cubs are inseparable, and it was inevitable they would become named after the brave fictional musketeer characters: Athos, Porthos, and D'Artagnan.

Porthos always hangs out with his brothers, Athos and D'Artagnan. Same as his brother D'Artagnan, Porthos is very shy, grabbing his food and dashing to the far side of the enclosure before eating.

Cheetah Update: D'Artagnan

From your last update on D’Artagnan, we’d like to tell you a bit more about him and what he has been doing over the past six-month period.

As you know, the "Three Musketeers" were about eight months old when they arrived at CCF after their mother, one sibling and two other adults were shot. The three cubs are inseparable, and it was inevitable they would become named after the brave fictional musketeer characters: Athos, Porthos, and D'Artagnan.

D'Artagnan is the clown prince of the musketeers. He is very shy and wants nothing to do with people. Even at feeding time he approaches his bowl reluctantly and tries to grab a hold of his meat without taking his eyes off the scary humans. On one occasion, his bowl was located next to the water bowl and, thinking he was grabbing dinner, instead got a face full of water.

In December, the “Three Musketeers” underwent their annual health examination, performed by our Veterinarian, Dr. Arthur Bagot-Smith. These health checks are part of the Namibian permit requirements and also give us the opportunity to check on the health of our cheetahs. During the exam, each cheetah undergoes a clinical examination, from head to tail to ensure all joints are working and internal organs, such as the kidneys feel normal. They are also checked for external parasites, treated if necessary and vaccinated for feline distemper and rabies. Blood is also collected and these samples are screened for viruses and overall health to make sure that all organs, such as the liver, are functioning well.

Cheetah Update: Saturn

From your last update on Saturn, we’d like to tell you a bit more about him and what he has been doing over the past six-month period.

As you know, Saturn was caught with his brother, Orion, and their sister, Luna, in late 2004. When he arrived at CCF we realised that he had sustained serious injuries – his 4th neck vertebrae and a front foot were both broken. Luckily, Saturn is a fighter and managed to regain his health and is now looking very good. He is just as feisty as his brother, and you would never even be able to tell of the extent of his injuries from the past.

Saturn and Orion are inseparable. They share an enclosure with Athos, Porthos and D'Artagnan and if the musketeers leave any food in their bowls, you can be sure that Saturn and Orion will get it. They sometimes have to run a gauntlet to get their food as it is given to them separately to prevent confrontation at mealtimes. They refuse to be intimidated by the other three.

Cheetah Update: Orion

From your last update on Orion, we’d like to tell you a bit more about him and what he has been doing over the past six-month period.

As you know, Orion was caught with his brother, Saturn, and their sister, Luna, in late 2004. They are known as the “Star cubs”.

Orion and Saturn share an enclosure with Athos, Porthos and D'Artagnan. This four acre enclosure is next to where their sister and her female companions live. Orion and Saturn have bonded with these other orphan male cheetahs. However, our staff has quite a job at feeding times, as each of the male cheetahs have to run a gauntlet to get their food as it is given to them separately to prevent confrontation with the other males at mealtimes. They refuse to be intimidated by each other. Orion is a very handsome cat, who will be very large when fully grown.

Cheetah Update: Ohana-Luna

From your last update on Ohana-Luna, we’d like to tell you a bit more about her and what she has been doing over the past six-month period.

Upon reaching sexual maturity Ohana-Luna was separated from her brothers, Orion and Saturn, they were known here as the “Star Cubs”. She was put together with three other females. She and the other female cheetahs all live in a four acre pen that has a shared fence line with her brothers, so they can see each other and communicate through the fence.

Ohana-Luna is the youngest cat in the enclosure she shares with Cleo, Samantha and Tempesta. She's a bit of a loner, always hanging back a bit from the others. She loves to play "tag" with the other cats, taking tremendous joy in running at top speed. She seems to be fully recovered from her neck injuries sustained when she was a cub at the end of last year.

In order to prepare for her annual physical, Ohana-Luna (and each of the other girls) were given markered meat so that their scat can be identified and collected for research analysis. A large piece of meat was tossed to her in the enclosure and each day the race was on with her, Samantha, Ohana-Luna and sometimes Cleo, in hot pursuit. As they became accustomed to the game, they would each get their respective positions at the approach of the keeper, with Ohana-Luna posed like an Olympic sprinter in the starting block. The chase, as each gets one piece of meat, while the others run after whoever has the first piece frequently go on for several minutes, with the cats often reaching full speed.

Cheetah Update: Cleo

From your last update on Cleo, we’d like to tell you a bit more about her and what she has been doing over the past six-month period.

As you know, Cleo came to CCF in 2004 as a very young 6-month-old cub.
After her compulsory quarantine period she was then introduced to two other young females, Tempesta and Samantha to develop social skills and play behaviour. She continues to live with these two females and another orphan joined the three, that being Luna. All four of the females love to lie next to the gate of their 4 acre pen and when a staff member walks by she does a mock charge with a combination of a hiss and a spit...basically saying "BOO!" Cleo really seems to enjoy it when she startles someone who isn't familiar with her daily routine.

Cheetah Update: Misty

From your last update on Misty, we’d like to tell you a bit more about her and what she has been doing over the past six-month period.

As you know, Misty came to CCF in November 2002 and now lives in the 200 acre Bellebeno cheetah pen with 10 other females.

She has befriended the two females, Nina and Solo and the 3 of them are always together.
The three of them always waits at the gate when the keepers want to come into the enclosure to feed, they have to “move” the girls away from the gate. Usually luring them with to one side, as the truck drives in. Once in, the CCF staff drive the truck down the road of the 200 acre enclosure, with the cats running behind. This gives them daily exercise before getting their food. Misty usually awaits the vehicle at the gate at feeding time with Nina and Solo, but is not the fastest runner when all the cats chase after the vehicle for food and a little exercise. Misty has very good manners and always waits until all the other cats have been fed before coming to collect her meat, thereby avoiding confrontation and not having to protect her meal from other sneaky cats.

Misty tipped the scales at 40 kilograms; this is above average for a Namibian female cheetah (average is 36 kilograms). During her physical, she also had all the burrs combed out and CCF volunteer and visiting dentist, Dr. Larry Friedman, who assisted with the workups, confirmed that she had severe wear on her lower incisors and slight wear on her upper incisors. He smoothed all her canine tips.

Cheetah Update: Tempesta

From your last update on Tempesta, we’d like to tell you a bit more about her and what she has been doing over the past six-month period.

As you know, Tempesta was brought to CCF in 2003 after a distressed farmer had been forced to shoot her mother who had contracted rabies. Luckily Tempesta did not have to suffer a similar fate as she was in a poor condition after being abandoned by her very ill mother, but did not contract the disease.

Tempesta shares her enclosure with Samantha, Luna and Cleo. In order to prepare for her annual physical, Tempesta was given markered meat so that her scat could be identified and collected for research analysis. A large piece of meat was tossed to her in the enclosure and each day the race was on with her, Samantha, Luna and sometimes Cleo, in hot pursuit. As they became accustomed to the game, they would each get their respective positions at the approach of the keeper, with Tempesta posed like an Olympic sprinter in the starting block. The chase, as each gets one piece of meat, while the others run after whoever has the first piece frequently go on for several minutes, with the cats often reaching full speed.

In 2005 Tempesta had CCF staff and keepers very worried after not eating for a few days and looked to be in a lot of pain. She was taken to the vet immediately, and all at CCF were shocked to hear that her spleen had ruptured and had to be removed. Luckily the operation went smoothly and Tempesta was reunited with her friends soon after. To this day it is uncertain what exactly happened to her, something that will most likely remain a mystery.

Cheetah Update: Samantha

From your last update on Samantha, we’d like to tell you a bit more about her and what she has been doing over the past six-month period.

As you know, Samantha, her sister Carey and their brother, Mr. Big, were rescued and brought to CCF in 2003. Carey did not survive due to health problems and Mr. Big and other young male cheetahs living with their sisters as a group of orphaned cubs were separated from each other when they reached sexual maturity.

Samantha shares her enclosure with Tempesta, Luna and Cleo. In order to prepare for her annual physical, Samantha was given markered meat so that her scat could be identified and collected for research analysis. A large piece of meat was tossed to her in the enclosure and each day the race was on with her, Tempesta, Luna and sometimes Cleo, in hot pursuit. As they became accustomed to the game, they would each get their respective positions at the approach of the keeper, with Samantha posed like an Olympic sprinter in the starting block. The chase, as each gets one piece of meat, while the others run after whoever has the first piece frequently go on for several minutes, with the cats often reaching full speed.

Cheetah Update: Elsie

From your last update on Elsie, we’d like to tell you a bit more about her and what she has been doing over the past six-month period.

As you know, Elsie came to CCF in October 2004 and we identified her as one of the cheetahs that was radio-collared by CCF in 1998 when she had three 14-month-old cubs!

At 13, Elsie is CCF's oldest cheetah, but is still a very lively and happy cat. True to her instinct, she always hides in the bushes until the vehicle is close at feeding times and then jumps at it. In the past few months she has been playing games with the keepers...not coming to feed for several days until all at CCF are sick with worry, then jumping out at the vehicle as usual the next day as if nothing has happened. CCF staff are now convinced that Elsie is taking “cat-naps” at feeding times and fails to wake up at feeding times as there seems to be nothing wrong with her health…she might even sneakily be stealing the other cats’ food when she awakens from her midday snooze.

Cheetah Update: Daisy

From your last update on Daisy, we’d like to tell you a bit more about her and what she has been doing over the past six-month period.

As you know Daisy, her sister Rosy and their brother Mushara arrived at CCF in February 2003. As the cats reached sexual maturity, they needed to be segregated and Mushara was put together with other male orphans of similar age.

Daisy and Rosy, the “Flower girls”, are sisters and spend most of their time together. In 2005, CCF started a "cheetah release" project and Rosy and Daisy were the lucky two chosen for this. They were released in a 4000ha game camp on CCF property. The 4th day after their release they caught a warthog proving that they are very good hunters, Rosy especially. On numerous occasion Daisy was spotted waiting for Rosy to "bring home the bacon" while Rosie was hunting. Unfortunately they moved to a neighbouring farm and caught a goat after having been released for 6 weeks. They were brought back to their 200 acre enclosure where they live with 8 other female cheetahs.

The “Flower Girls” are very relaxed cheetahs, maybe remembering their time outside the same way we humans would a memorable holiday...however, the food arrives every day like clock work. When it is feeding time, the girls often wait at the gate and stalk the truck as if it is their prey. Once in, the CCF staff drive the truck down the road of the 200 acre enclosure, with the cats running behind. This gives them daily exercise before getting their food. Daisy is the most talkative female cheetah, coming up close to the vehicle at feeding times, "talking" to the keepers with a very high-pitched chirp.

Daisy weighed in at 32 kilograms, this is below average for a Namibian female cheetah (average is 36 kilograms), however she has a small frame and is in very good condition. During her physical, she also had all the burrs combed out and CCF volunteer and visiting dentist, Dr. Larry Friedman, who assisted with the workups, confirmed that even her teeth were looking great with only a slight wear on her teeth.