CCF celebrating Cheetah Day on Tuesday

OTJIWARONGO, 03 DEC  – The International Cheetah Day celebration at Otjiwarongo Tuesday is expected to attract hundreds of local and foreign visitors.
The Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) situated about 44 kilometres east of Otjiwarongo is organising the one-day event.
CCF’s Research and Education Manager, Annatjie Siyaya told Nampa in an interview Sunday said Cheetah Day falls on 04 December in honour of the birth of Khayam, the first female cheetah born in the United States of America from African parents.
Dr Laurie Marker, the founder of CCF, raised Khayam in the United States and brought the cheetah to Namibia in 1977 for a first-of-its-kind research project to see if a cheetah raised in captivity can be taught to hunt.
Siyaya said the CCF attaches great significance to the celebration because Namibia has the largest cheetah population in the world, with over 1 500 of the large cats in the Otjozondjupa and Omaheke regions.
“We have 33 cheetahs at CCF aged between seven months and 13 years,” she said.
The conservationist said most of the cheetahs kept in enclosures were brought in while they were cubs, many injured or sick, by farmers who found them on their farms.
Siyaya said the CCF has a fully equipped laboratory managed by trained and experienced veterinarians.
One of the keepers at the foundation, Becky Johnston has been working with the cheetahs for the past three years.
Johnston and her team feed the cheetahs six days a week using one to two kilogrammes of fresh donkey or horse meat per day.
The donkeys and horses slaughtered for consumption are usually bought from the local farmers.
“We deliberately starve them on the seventh day to allow their digestive system to clean itself and start over again,” she explained.
The personal assistant to the fund’s managing director, Lauren Pfeiffer said the CCF was founded in 1990 and sits on 48 000 square kilometres of farmland.
One cheetah needs approximately 1 500 square kilometres to roam on to stay healthy, she said.
Pfeiffer said in order to celebrate this year’s Cheetah Day, entry to the facility has been made free from Friday until Tuesday.
She said on Sunday alone, more than 30 visitors from Otjiwarongo watched as the animals were fed.
Countries like Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom and the USA, amongst others, annually hold various conservation activities to celebrate the day on 04 December every year, said Pfeiffer. – NAMPA