Crazy Cats

The last day of 2010!!! Can you believe it!! Time has gone by so quickly!!!

I have been quiet with my updates because we have been so hectically busy!! To add to that our internet is down at our house and the electricity cuts out at any sign of lightning so internet in the office is also scarce! I must say that even though the thunderstorms mean no electricity and hot water, they are still amazingly beautiful!!

So… what can I tell you….

Our 3 new cheetahs are doing well! I have finally named them after observing their behavior! The dominant sister, the darkest of the three is Askari. This is an Arabic and Swahili word meaning "soldier / fighter." She is the “leader of the pack” and enjoys hissing at us to protect her sisters.

Askari

The inquisitive sister, who is lighter in colour than the other two with a pretty, round face and tear drop markings on her face is Bukeka meaning 'beautiful' in Zulu.

Bukeka

The third sister is very calm and lurks in the shadows of her sisters. I have named her Thulile which mean "is quiet" in Zulu. She is not as dark as Askari and not as light as Bukeka and is therefore referred to as the “middle sister”.

Thulile

Every 4 days we have to feed them either a warthog or an impala. I have been practicing my shooting but have not tried it out on an animal yet…. Soon though, I feel like I am ready to do it! Armand has been shooting now that Wimpie is away. We shoot something, track it down(they normally do a little run after being shot – especially the warthogs – though little things) and then load it on the back of the bakkie and take it to the cheetah boma. We then drag it in and and wait about 2m away from the carcass. We need to be there so that the cheetahs have to come and get the carcass from us – a little bit of a challenge for them.

They use the same strategy each time. First Bukeka comes in. She is so inquisitive! She comes to check what we have and hisses and slaps her feet on the ground to try chase us away. She then goes back to her sisters. Chirping to them to communicate (cheetahs make a bird like chirping noise). Then all three come in together – power in numbers! They come in fast, hissing and slapping, they try to circle us. Bukeka grabs the carcass and pulls it away and then Thulile helps her carry it away. Askari stays behind and watches us. She is always quite, low in the grass and very aggressive. She creeps in close, about a meter away from our feet and gives 2 quick slaps on the ground at a time. She does a circle around herself and then faces us with another 2 slaps on the ground. She goes on like this a few times allowing her sisters to drag the carcass away. When she is satisfied that they are far enough, she leaves us but always keeps an eye on us.

Always exciting and such an adrenaline rush!! :)

 Wimpie and I removing old carcasses from the boma

One of our cheetahs on the reserve – Puka – was injured badly while hunting. She ran into a low lying branch at quite a speed and ripped her stomach open. I called the vet out. He darted her and gave her about 80 – 100 stitches!!! He did three layers of stitching, one on the lining of the abdomen, one through the muscles and another on the skin. I have been tracking her 3 times a day and giving her anti – biotics twice a day. We cut a piece of meat out of the leg of an impala that we shot to disguise the pills. So far its working! She is looking good and happy and she even hunted this morning!! Animals are strong! When I gave her, her pills last night she came up to me and rubbed me like a domestic cat would do! She has never done this before! It was almost as if to say  “thank you!” :) This is why I love what I do!!!!! :)

Puka's operation

Still sleepy

Waking up!