Every cheetah on this earth is a valuable gift and plays a role in the survival of the species, whether wild or captive.  Each cheetah life is to be celebrated and honored, and each death to be noted and mourned.

Last week Cheetah Outreach in South Africa lost their beautiful male ambassador, Shadow.  The loss of an ambassador cat is so very difficult; it is a sadness that we know too well at the Cincinnati Zoo.  No words can heal the loss of a glorious cat, only the knowledge that he lived a privileged life for 14 years and was adored by so many.  Shadow’s legacy lives on in the conservation program he helped to create and in the hearts and minds of all that were lucky enough to know his proud purr.

Just as Cheetah Outreach honored the memory of Moya, we too honor Shadow. 

Our hearts go out to Annie, Cheetah Outreach staff and fans.

Annie Beckhelling wrote about Shadow:

On Thursday, March 4th, Shadow, our oldest friend, died.  He touched the many hundred thousands, young, old, tall and small- a generation of children got to stroke his beautiful spotted coat- many more marveled at his dignity and took with them the conservation message he made real.

He died as he lived- fighting with great courage, so nearly beating the odds.

I CARRY HIM IN MY HEART

Annie Beckhelling

Founder and Director

CHEETAH OUTREACH

To learn more about Shadow or the programs at Cheetah Outreach visit http://www.cheetah.co.za/news_shadow.html

The Cat Ambassador Program is made up of a pretty small team of people, most of whom you have already seen on the blog.

Above a group photo from Sara cheetahs record breaking run from last summer. (Thanks to our photo buddy Steve!)

Trainers from right to left are Eunice, Alicia, (cheetah Sara) Cathryn (the program founder), Linda and Kathy.

Even though sometimes keeping all the cats, dogs (and hog) happy, we have a good time and we love our job.

Most people ask what it takes to be an animal trainer and each trainer in the program has followed a different path to get here.  But, every animal job does require a college degree in Biology, Zoology, Psychology or a related field and experience working with animals.  The best advice we can give a youngster starting out is to study hard in school, read as much as you can about animals and when you are old enough start to volunteer at a local animal shelter or zoo.

Now you know us and hopefully you can come visit during the summer shows and we can get to know you!

Even though Nia and Cali do not consider bamboo delicious it is still fun to play in.

Nia and Cali are quick to investigate.

Nia takes a few bites, just to double check.

It is not as tasty as Nia thought, but it is good stuff to hide in.

Uh, oh- Cali smells trouble!

Nia gets low and prepares to attack.

An unsuspecting Cali lets her guard down.

Attack cheetah strikes!

See, carnivores do like plants!

Just like humans, animals need to eat too.  Zoo nutritionists formulate diets based on what animals eat in the wild and what type of food is available to us here in the U.S.

Eunice is holding Nia’s breakfast pan- looks tasty right?

Here is a closer look.  It reminds us of ground beef, before it is cooked.  BUT it is not the kind of stuff you can find at a grocery store!  This is a specialized diet made for captive cats by a zoo nutrition company.

In addition to the meat, some of the cats in our care also get fish (especially the fishing cat!), and beef heart pieces for occasional treats, big ones for the cheetahs, little ones for the small cats.  The fruits and veggies you see in the photo are for Sir Francis Bacon, the red river hog.

So, who wants to come over for lunch?

The zoo and Cincinnati community is still talking about Cathryn’s award.

She is such a dynamic woman that there is so much to say about her history and achievements.

During the award dinner they played a video about Cathryn.  To view the video, click here.

Enjoy!