The young female cheetah decreased less than 5 minutes after Dr Andy Fraser darted her. Gingerly, the wildlife vet sneaked inside her enclosed boma to make certain she was immobilised, and thoroughly packed her onto his vehicle.
Mopping sweat off his eyebrow, Fraser, who runs Rooiberg veterinary services in Thabazimbi, Limpopo, explained how this two-year-old feline was the last of 9 cheetahs darted early on Friday in preparation for their trip to India later on that day. She was likewise among the simplest. “The other ones ran up and down and I had to shoot them while they’re running.”
Since July, the 9 wild-caught cheetahs had actually been kept in quarantine centers on his property, waiting for federal government sign-off on South Africa’s very first cheetah translocation to India. Three other cheetahs were kept at Phinda Private Game Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal.
“It’s been a long time [in quarantine] but you’ll see they are going to start hunting next week in India, so it will be good,” Fraser smiled. Still, the darting treatment is difficult for the huge cats. “Unfortunately, there’s no other way for us to get our drugs into them. In a way, these cats are going through the most stressful process today, but it’s for the survival of their species.”
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