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Monday 24 January 2011

CCF Clinic work-up report on wild sub-adult male cheetah

On the 17th January 2011 CCF Clinic performed a work-up on a young male cheetah that was brought to the centre on the 14th January. The 22 to 24-month-old cheetah was trapped by a farmer in the Otavi region. The farmer had experienced the loss of 5 sheep in one night from cheetah. The young male was then kept in a secure quarantine pen at CCF until anaesthetized on the 17th January.

Namibian students and students from Van Hall University in Holland assist with the cheetah workup.
The procedure was led by Dr. Laurie Marker and Dr. Anne Schmidt Küntzel. Veterinary nurse, Rosie Glazier assisted and involved many students and volunteers in all aspects of the work-up. The animal showed no serious injuries except superficial abrasions to the nose, hip area and an ulcerated wound on the scrotal region. There was a cut on the lower gum, beneath the lower incisors. The samples collected included blood, hair, skin and ectoparasites. Measurements were taken; transponder and ear tag were placed. He also received a rabies vaccination, Frontline treatment and intravenous fluids. The focal palatine erosion was recorded as normal for both right and left on the upper palate.

Namibian farmers attending a course joined us in the Clinic to learn more about cheetahs.
The anaesthesia went smoothly and recovery was normal. He is now being held temporarily in the quarantine pen and fed an ample diet to increase his muscle mass and allow the minor wounds to heal before he is released.

More soon!

5 comments:

  1. Lucky boy! I suppose most herders would have killed him. Why, after losing 5 sheep in one night to cheetah, did this particular farmer trap him?
    Thanks for the post. We appreciate your fine work.

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  2. This is an excellent example of farmers' change in attitude about predators. Maybe that was not the cheetah killing his livestock. At any rate, we think that CCF's farmers' training courses and the use of predator-friendly livestock management practices are a valuable tool; perhaps these influenced the farmer to call CCF instead of shooting the cat.

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  3. Just as I suspected, CCF's program works, though I'm curious to know more details of this particular farmer's relationship with Dr Marker's staff. Thanks for the update and the wonderful work that you guys do.

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  4. Anonymous6:25 pm

    Very interesting story! Does this farmer have a livestock guarding dog? Because we all know what that can do!

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  5. Hi! The farmer that caught this cheetah is very conservation-minded and said that he did not want to shoot the cheetah if he caught it and asked for our assistance. He does not have a dog (yet). He and his wife were very concerned about the welfare of the cheetah after they gave it to us and we updated them on the cat’s health after we did the medical exam.

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