Encounters with Animals Part 4: Cheetahs

Part 4: Cheetahs

Back in Norway, at the beginning of our trip, Ellen told Andrew about the place outside of Cape Town where you can pet Cheetahs. Andrew had been dreaming about this ever since. He was under the misimpression that he would be able to pet baby cheetahs. My best guess is that the last time Ellen was there, there was a baby Cheetah. Babies, however, grow up, and for our visit there were only adult Cheetahs (all of which, were once babies). Andrew was slightly disappointed, but petting the adult was cool enough to make him forget all about babies. We are big big nerds and this was very clear at the cheetah sanctuary. First, we read all the signs. Then, we went on a tour. Then, we pet the cheetah and asked so many questions of the cheetah handler that we pet longer than anyone else. (Note: there is a dude whose job it is to pet, feed and be one with the cheetah all day. There are also a stream of foreign collage age kids who talk to tourists and educate the public. We figured out that the man who holds the cheetah all day has good answers to questions from nerdy folks like us.)

As we were leaving the tour guide thanked us being be “so attentive.” Sigh. I didn’t even think I was being attentive. Guess it is all a matter of perspective.

Did you know that cheetah bones are hollow so they can run faster? Did you know their stride can be up to 8 meters? Did you know that the dude who cares for them all day can pet them behind the ears and they like it, like a house cat? By the way they don’t like it when tourists do that, not that we did. We are Kate and Andrew and we obsessively follow instructions, especially instructions pertaining to petting large cats. Did you know that their black hair (the spot part) is softer then the golden hair?

Andrew would like me to mention that this cheetah is a “working” cheetah . He is working on behalf of his wild brother and sister cheetah. First off, he was in a movie with Patrick Swazey, which is a cool job. Secondly, tourists like us (and a lot of other tourists, who are apparently much less nerdy) pay 120 rand (about $15) for the right to pet the cheetah . In theory this experience transforms us into cheetah advocates that will fight for the survival of the species. This may be true. Also the $15 goes to the cheetah security puppy program. Cheetahs are killed by farmers because they eat live stock. Our adorable and very American - besides talking like an American, he also described distances in miles - tour guide did a little demonstration for us. He ran at a goat that was wandering the grounds and almost caught the goat. He said if he could catch a goat pretty easily, imagine how easy it is for a cheetah. So instead of hunting their natural prey like rabbits and small bucks, which can run away fast and are smart, they hunt dumb slow sheep and goats. (If there is one thing I have learned on our African adventures it is that sheep are really really stupid.)


The farmers don’t like this, so they kill the cheetahs. This is where the cheetah sanctuary comes in. They give farmers Anatolian sheep dogs as puppies. The puppies are raised with the sheep so that they think the sheep are their family. Then, if a cheetah comes to hunt the sheep the Anatolian sheep dogs scare the cheetah away. Cheetahs are not big. They are also very delicate. They are not up for a fight with a big ass sheep dog defending his siblings. On farms with the dogs stock loss has gone from 30% a year drastically down. In some cases, farmers have lost zero sheep to cheetahs and other predators over a year. Farmers are happy. Less cheetahs are being killed. Tourists get a snuggle. It is a good system.