Since I was a little kid I’ve been enthralled by Acinonyx Jubatus, with their amazing physique, speed, and appearance. People find them scary, a lot of people actually but I’ve always wanted one as a pet… I was a weird kid. Oh and by the way Acinonyx Jubatus are cheetahs (I just wanted to sound smart for a few minutes). Cheetahs are the fastest land animals in the world but they are also the fastest disappearing cat in
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| Cheetah cubs http://www.cheetahkids.com/cheetahconservationfund.html |
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| Cheetah running, showing its speed of up to 70 miles per hour! http://naturescrusaders.wordpress.com/2009/04/08/running-cheetahs-need-high-pufas-so-do-you/running-cheetah/ |
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| http://www.cheetahkids.com/cheetahconservationfund.html |
The Cheetah Conservation Fund has been saving cheetahs for twenty years! They have many branches, including:
Ø CCF Namibia
Ø CCF United States
Ø CCF Canada (Wohoo!)
The CCF has tons of awesome different programs, they do not only take immediate action, like creating cheetah conservatories but they do research so that they can discover long term solutions. The problem with a lot of organizations is that they set up conservations but they never deal with the root of the problem and the animals who are still living in the wild (which is how they should be!), are not protected at all. The CCF, on the other hand, they help cheetahs survive, not in a tiny, controlled habitat, but in their natural wildlife habitat. A specific program that does this is the Guard Dog Program.
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| Cheetah and guard dog, real picture taken in Namibia www.cheetah.org/?nd=guarding_dog_program |
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| An Anatolian Sheppard, the guard dogs used in the CCF program http://www.cheetah.org/?nd=guarding_dog_program |
Ø The Guard Dog Program is used in Namibia
Ø Farmers in Namibia
Ø Anatolian Sheppard’s are natural guard dogs and the CCF is breeding these dogs and placing them in farms all over Namibia
Ø These dogs keep the cheetahs away so the farmers don’t kill them, the livestock is protected from the hunting cheetahs and these dogs are very well taken care of. The CCF gives the family funds to take care of them, so don’t worry about the cute doggies. It’s a win-win-win situation!
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| Wild life activist with Cheetah in Namibia http://azstarnet.com/lifestyles/recreation/article_0b59ad25-1e54-5d6d-bb27-7d69847047cc.html |
Help me save the cheetahs!
p.s. Blogs I commented on...
Works Cited
Cheetah Fastest Land Animal Endangered Big Cat. Web. 04 Oct. 2010. <http://www.cheetahspot.com/>.
"Cheetahs, Cheetah Pictures, Cheetah Facts - National Geographic." Animals, Animal Pictures, Wild Animal Facts - National Geographic. Web. 04 Oct. 2010. <http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/cheetah/>.
"Introduction to the Cheetah." Cheetah Conservation Fund. Web. 04 Oct. 2010. <http://www.cheetah.org/?nd=intro_to_the_cheetah>.
"The Livestock Guarding Dog Program." Cheetah Conservation Fund. Web. 04 Oct. 2010. <http://www.cheetah.org/?nd=guarding_dog_program>.
"Why Are Cheetahs Endangered? | Ecological Problems." Ecological Problems. Web. 04 Oct. 2010. <http://ecological-problems.blogspot.com/2009/09/why-are-cheetahs-endangered.html>.
I would be considered one of those people who are slightly intimidated by cheetahs. However I am sure that keeping cheetahs around is very important. I was surprised to find out that dogs can keep cheetahs away, but if is works, that sounds like a good solution. I have to agree that many organizations do not tackle the root of a problem, which doesn't really benefit anyone. I enjoyed the "loose" way you wrote this blog, it made it very entertaining. Yet the blog was still informative. I especially like the fact that you posted a link for further information. Nice blog Natasha
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ReplyDeleteIt is unfortunate to read about animals that once widely populated our earth many years ago are now on the verge of becoming extinct because of human related activity. Cheetahs are by far one of my favorite animals, and just like any animal, they deserve to live long and prosper on planet earth. These beautiful animals should not need to vanish from our earth because of habitat loss or human conflict; it is their earth as much as it is ours.
ReplyDeleteThe problem, so it seems to be is that the human population is growing immensely and there are just not enough resources to provide for us all. We are taking away from the animals to provide for ourselves and our necessities. Now this isn't entirely fair because not only are we taking away from the cheetahs we are taking away from thousands of other species as well.
I found your blog very informative about the cheetahs, and it is true how some organizations don’t tackle the root of the problem but other minor components of the problem, not fully resolving it.
Biodiversity is an important aspect of our world and humans are destroying it. There needs to be more organizations such as the Cheetah Conservation Fund that correctly try to conserve biodiversity.
Natasha, excellent blog! I found it very informative and entertaining. I enjoyed the numerouse visuals you included of the cheetahs and I really liked how you presented your information in such a casual fun way. I had never heard of the Gaurd Dog Program bedore and I find it extremely fascinating that another animal species is being utilized to protect the cheetahs. I also think that the cheetah was a good animal to focus on because they truly capture a lot of peoples attention because of their well known attribute, speed. Overall this was a fantastic blog!
ReplyDeleteNatasha great blog, it exposes the problems with conservation organizations. It is true, many set up conservations but do not deal with the root of the problem. And also, wow a dog can protect live stock from cheetahs. Who knew that a dog could fight off a cheetah. I also didn't know that people killed cheetahs because they were killing lifestock. I just thought that people killed them for their fur. This has brought me insight into the deeper meaning of why cheetahs are being targetted.
ReplyDeleteCheetahs were one of my favorite animals growing up as well. I never wanted one as a pet but it was great to watch them on National Geographic. To hear that there are only a handful full of cheetahs left is really scary. Especially considering where they are located in the animal kingdom. But the cheetah conservation fun is really making strides to end the deaths of many cheetahs. To think that a dog would be able to scare away a cheetah is kind of absurd but at the same time it beats getting killed by a farmer. I think more laws should be put in place to protects cheetahs from farmers for example. I must say that this blog is very informative and when people read things like this hopefully they will be able to find new ways of helping cheetahs, even though we live so far away. Good job!
ReplyDeleteNatasha, the Guard Dog program sounds like a great program. Who would of thought that a couple of dogs could scare away cheetahs! This organization really does tackle the root of the problem, and it's keeping both sides happy. It wouldn't be fair to the farmers if their was a law to stop them from killing the cheetahs but no way to protect their farms, and we can't be killing the few cheetahs we have left so this seems like a great solution.It's amazing how quickly the cheetah's population dropped from 100,00 to 10,000, we can't let it continue this way.
ReplyDeleteI found your blog very informative and I liked how it was written in such a casual format. Great job!