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Follow
up on Phoenix
 The
Captive Release Project reported a bit of a speed bump in the last newsletter
when the female cheetah Phoenix broke her toe and it had to be amputated.
Thanks to Peter Caldwell and the dedicated staff at Old Chapel Veterinary
Clinic, Phoenix has made a full recover and has been released back onto
Makulu Makete. Bennie and Narinda have been monitoring her very closely
and after several unsuccessful chases, she caught a young bushbuck and
a duiker all in one week!
The scat sniffing team also made a trip to Makulu Makete to see if we
could find any scat from Phoenix from the first three weeks of her release.
We were keen to get this scat because Phoenix was not seen to hunt for
the fist two weeks or so, but never lost any condition! The researchers
suspected that she was possibly eating small mammals, but it would have
been nice to prove it by analysing her scat! We spent a very long three
days walking with Diesel in all the areas that Phoenix had been using.
This was very challenging as we were trying to walk transects, but it
is tough in thick bush (with thorns!) and whenever Diesel started following
a scent, we would get tangled up in a bush and pull him off the scent!
Very frustrating! So we decided to work him off lead – wow, crazy
sprint through the bush behind a hugely excited Staffie! Diesel did
great and worked happily far away from me, but never left my line of
site and came back as soon as he was called. I prefer working on lead
however for safety reasons. We managed to almost step on a puff adder
on this trip and black mambas are common.
Roadtripping
with Byron
 Education
Officer Rita Groenewald wrote the following on her roadtrip with Byron
to Alldays.
“Being the first time to travel on a sleep-over with Byron, I
was overwhelmed with excitement on the morning of departure. It was
also the first time that the entire education team, including our researcher,
Sally Taylor from the UK, would travel together. The journey up to Alldays
was great fun, Amos had an interesting selection of music and the scenery
(including the huge Baobab trees) were amazing – the long journey
was over before we even knew it.
On reaching our destination at the game farm near Alldays, Byron soon
made himself at home in the games room of the tented bushcamp. Later
in the evening we all gathered around the camp fire. Byron was very
well behaved during both nights in the tent – the only disturbance
being Sally waking Marilyn, Byron and myself looking for a torch.
The school visits were very successful and it was extremely rewarding
doing the presentations in the heart of cheetah territory.
Roadtripping with Byron is truly amazing and I can’t wait to sleep
out with Byron, Marilyn and the team again”.
Chronicles
of Diesel
 The
scat sniffing team have had a busy few weeks! Kelly and Diesel from
De Wildt and Shannon from McKaynine Training Centre have been all over
Limpopo on the trail of cheetahs poop! Diesel is working very well and
handling himself very professionally in some tough situations. He has
been confronted with elephants, rhinos and various antelope species
all on foot. He was very curious (especially with the tree snapping
elephant), but never once threatened to bark at them! We also saw lions
from the vehicle and an elephant came and sniffed our fuel cap with
his trunk! In both cases Diesel was aware of the animals and had a good
look, but never barked or caused a scene! We also worked in the presence
of lions for the first time. We luckily never got to see them on foot
– but their collar signals did get a bit close once and we make
a hasty trot back to the car. We did walk past several lion scats and
Diesel totally ignored them. It was amazing to see the size difference
in the lion tracks and Diesels little track – the lion tracks
were the size of his head!
Partnership
with Marakele National Park
 The
De Wildt Wild Cheetah Project is in the process of developing a partnership
with Marakele National Park and the contractual park Marakele Pty Ltd.
The park is in the Thabazimbi district which is near our core study
area for free roaming cheetahs. Additionally, the park is surrounded
in predator proof fences and has both lions and spotted hyaenas present.
The park is interested in further understanding the predator prey dynamics
as well as the cheetah population. For us, it will be interesting to
compare the cheetah population in the park with that on the adjacent
farmlands. It is planned to do a camera trapping survey in the park
to determine the size of the cheetah population. A project proposal
has been submitted to SANParks and we are waiting with enthusiasm to
get this project up and running.
Project
Ambassador
 Sally
Taylor, our researcher from the UK writes the following: “In the
last decade a realisation has developed into the necessity for education
in order to improve species survival and welfare. However, with conservation
education therefore in its juvenile years, research is needed into the
most effective way of teaching all generations about conservation.
Ambassador Cheetahs are used in a number of institutions across South
Africa, not to mention the world, and is based on the idea that giving
people an up close and personal experience with a cheetah will at the
very least instil a respect for these majestic creatures. However, the
effectiveness of the use of Ambassador animals has never been scientifically
researched. As part of my Masters degree in Wild Animal Biology at the
Royal Veterinary College, London, in conjunction with the Institute
of Zoology and the Zoological Society of London, I am investigating
the effectiveness of the Ambassador cheetahs at De Wildt as education
tools. The study is focusing on 10-13 year olds at the schools that
are targeted by the Outreach Education Programme, which covers a wide
range of socio-economic backgrounds. Each child is asked to complete
a simple questionnaire before getting a close encounter with an Ambassador
cheetah, and then the questionnaire is repeated. The questionnaire assesses
the children’s biological recognition of the cheetah and their
attitudes towards the cheetah and its conservation. It is hoped that
this pioneering study, initiated by De Wildt, will be able to shed some
light on whether Ambassador Cheetahs are aiding species survival and
how the Ambassadors time (which we all know is very precious) can be
used most effectively.”
Giving
the African Wild Dog a Shot at Survival
Anyone
who has witnessed the death of a dog from Canine Distemper will agree
that it’s absurd not to have all pet dogs vaccinated against this
disease.
 Infection
with the canine distemper virus results in symptoms such as fever, loss
of appetite, vomiting, diarrhoea, watery discharge from the eyes and
nose, and hardening of the foot pads. Eventually, serious damage to
the nervous system sets in, resulting in twitches, epileptic fits, ataxia
and ultimately, death.
So contagious that it has
been dubbed ‘the canine plague’, Canine Distemper has become
increasingly prevalent in the wild. With this in mind, Prof. Henk Bertschinger,
Department of Production Animal Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Science,
University of Pretoria, placed a call to Anthony Crossley, Marketing
Manager of Merial South Africa.
The African
Wild Dog … second most endangered African carnivore
He highlighted
the plight of the African Wild Dog on the African continent. “There
are only about 500 surviving Wild Dogs in South Africa, making it Africa’s
second most endangered carnivore,” Prof. Bertschinger explains.
The Kruger National Park houses the only remaining metapopulation of
wild dogs in South Africa and disturbingly this population has decreased
from 400 to approximately 100 animals during recent years. “The
De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Centre has bred over 500 of these highly
social animals, and despite having participated in numerous successful
releases into the wild, this species still faces the threat of extinction.”
Prof. Bertschinger continued to describe the need for De Wildt, a registered
non-profit organisation, to secure the future of the species by means
of appropriate vaccination, preferably with a state-of-the-art vaccine
such as Merial’s Recombitek® C4/CV. Crossley was happy to
help, and offered the vaccine to all 87 dogs, housed at the Centre and
at a satellite facility in the Waterberg area.
Why this vaccine specifically?
There are several canine distemper vaccines available. Readers
may be wondering what make this vaccine the one of choice?
“Traditional polyvalent vaccines (vaccinations against a number
of diseases, instead of just one (monovalent)) for domestic dogs contain
a live strain of the distemper virus, which may in fact trigger the
actual disease when one vaccinates wild dogs with it,” Prof. Bertschinger
explains. “The other alternative is to carry out primary vaccinations
with what is known as a killed distemper vaccine, which has to be custom-made
and only provides low antibody titres in response. (Less antibodies
against a disease imply a greater risk of contracting the disease when
the animal is exposed to it.)”
The leader of the pack
“What makes Merial’s Recombitek® C4/CV vaccine
the leader of the pack, so to speak, is the fact that the distemper
component of this vaccine is derived from a recombinant canarypox vector,”
he continues. “In real terms, this means that there is no risk
whatsoever of the dog contracting Canine Distemper after having been
vaccinated against the disease, making it safe and ideal for use in
wild dogs.”
Proven track record
Prof. Bertschinger went on to say that this world-renowned
vaccine was used on wild dogs in the United States, and that no side
effects were recorded. “We will go one step further with these
donated vaccines, and test all the vaccinated dogs for response in terms
of antibody titres, and I’m confident that we will uncover a better
coverage, and for a longer period of time than conventional vaccines
would offer.”
What the future holds
Prof. Bertschinger
hopes that the Recombitek® C4/CV vaccine will be used on free-ranging
dogs which also need protection against ‘the canine plague’,
which, together with Rabies, is the biggest killer of wild dogs. “This
conservation exercise is extremely important, especially in view of
the fact that the free-roaming dogs often come into contact with feral
domestic dogs,” he says.
Interested readers are invited
to discuss vaccine options with their veterinarians. Those wishing to
get involved in donating, or who wish to visit the De Wildt Cheetah
and Wildlife Centre, are invited to call the centre on 012 504 1921
or visit www.dewildt.org.za.
Field Officer,
Luke Strugnell reports:
Well its hunting
season again and this means bad times for Cheetah and any other carnivores
found on farms. A great deal of hunters still shoot carnivores on sight
and farmers are known to encourage the shooting and thus the removal
of the animals from the system.
A case in point occurred
a few weeks back when following a tip off Inspector Michele Drummond
of the SAPS in Tom Burke stopped and searched a bakkie outside the police
station. The bakkie was full of carcasses from a recent hunting trip.
The tip off turned out to be correct and the fresh cheetah skin was
found at the bottom of the load. The Inspector immediately arrested
the two men and charged them at the police station. On calling the Judge
responsible for the area she was told to give them an admission of guilt
fine of a thousand Rand and let them go! She proceeded to the farm and
found the owner and some workers next to the road. On walking into the
bush the carcass of the cheetah was found. The farmer used the most
common excuse that the cheetah had been run over. The case is still
being investigated and will hopefully go further.
Anatolian
Echo accidentally shot
 We
received a report on Saturday that Echo, one of our cattle dogs was
missing following an incident involving a leopard amongst the cattle.
None of the cattle were missing or injured but the worst was feared
for the dog. Attie, the owner of the farm, spent days and nights looking
for Echo with no luck. Eventually it was discovered almost three days
later that the neighbors son had shot the dog on seeing it with the
cattle. Attie, the farm staff and our team were all extremely upset.
It appears that when the leopard came into the herd the dog protected
the cattle and most of the cattle returned to the kraal. Two however
were missing and it would seem that Echo went in search of these two.
The confusion caused by the leopard made the cattle push over a fence
and so the cattle were on the neighbors farm. The neighbors son then
found them with a dog and assumed the worst. Attie is still extremely
upset and would like another dog as soon as possible. He says that he
doesn’t know if he can continue farming without an Anatolian to
protect the herd. All credit to Echo and were all sorry to have lost
him!
A week or so later I received
a call from another farmer with a similar story. The dog was missing
and they were searching the farm. It was later discovered that the dog
had been poisoned by a farm worker who was apparently upset to be loosing
chickens. Whether the dog was responsible or not is another matter.
A case of malicious damage to property was opened and the farm worker
arrested. This case is still being investigated.
The Anatolian Guard Dog project is a partnership between Cheetah Outreach
and the De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Trust.
Thank you
British Airways (Comair)
The De Wildt Wild
Cheetah Project, in partnership with Cheetah Outreach have been doing
a lot of pro-active predator conservation work in the cheetah distribution
area in South Africa by placing Anatolian Live Stock Guarding Dogs with
farmers in core areas.
The latest placement is that
of an Anatolian called Themba. Themba is a one year old male Anatolian
who started his career as livestock Guarding Dog by protecting a herd
of sheep belonging to the President of the IUCN, MR Vali Moosa. Themba
was acting as a second livestock Guarding Dog together with Uthaya who
is already three years old and has developed into a excellent Anatolian
Livestock Dog. Unfortunately Themba was pushed from his herd by Uthaya
and started wandering around looking for a new herd to protect. It was
decided to move him into “Cheetah Territory” and British
Airways (Comair) as usual kindly assisted in flying him up from Cape
Town to Johannesburg O.R Tambo Airport, where Deon Cilliers, Conservation
Manager of the De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Trust received him. The
staff of the shipping company was extremely friendly and helpful in
this regard.
Themba was placed with his
new herd of sheep near Alldays in the Limpopo Province and we hope he
will serve as all proud in protecting the sheep against cheetahs and
other predators.
 Amos
graduates with flying colours
Amos Letsoalo,
Education Officer of the De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Trust graduated
in May at the University of South Africa. Amos did a diploma in Outcomes
Based education. This qualification enables Amos to compliment and enhance
his impact among teachers where our Education Programme is based.
Thanks
to
Shirley Shearer
of Outdoor Expo who donated a stand to De Wildt during the recent outdoor
Expo which was held at Kyalami Race track. One of our Education Outreach
partners Afrikaanse Hoer Seunskool in Pretoria helped man the stand
and to promote the work of De Wildt. They did a wonderful job. One of
our staff pretended to be an angry landowner who wanted to shoot a cheetah
and our young ambassadors convinced him that this is not the way to
go but this bright young man soon realised that Deon was on one of our
educational posters.
Thanks also to partners in animal health Seremed, and Merial for significant
donations of products. This ensures that our animals are given the best.
 Meet
the Team
Louise van der
Westhuizen is De Wildt’s Bookings Officer and Receptionist. Louise
has one of the most responsible jobs on the farm as she sees that tours
go off smoothly and guides are informed as to what is happening. She
also liaises with the Lodge on a daily basis confirming reservations.
Louise has been
at De Wildt for 11 years.
Bon Voyage
Joshua Mpete, teacher
from a local school and winner of De Wildt's first Outreach Eduction
Exchange Programme is on his way to Chester. In the next edition of
Wildt Tales we will report on this exciting exchange programme.
Video Camera
needed
Our research team
are in the field daily and experience many unique things eg, our scat
sniffing dog, Diesel coming across a lion spoor and much more. We need
to record these incidents and events for scientific purposes as well
as to share with the world. Can you help us with a video camera. Please
contact Vanessa on cheetah@dewildt.org.za
From the
Adoptions Desk
Once again we are
delighted to welcome a considerable number of new parents to our adoption
programme. The number of renewals has also increased encouragingly.
We wholeheartedly welcome you and thank you all for you love and support
of our animals!
We would like to also thank all those of you who made the time to join
us for parents’ open day. It was an absolute pleasure to meet
with you all and to introduce you to your wild children. I am sure that
you will join me in thanking the De Wildt team members who made the
day possible:
• Vanessa for organising and introducing the day
• Kelly and Diesel for their enlightening presentation
• Fran and Eurika for the wonderful tour and for sharing their
vast knowledge with us
• Johnny for the much needed hot drinks
• Alfred for feeding the animals and for patiently opening all
those gates for us
New Parents
Diamond Level
Petrus & Analise Buitendag, Gilla Kaplan, Sonelle & Eliot Hall,
Beryl Branthwaite & Rainer Holzberg, Claude Owona, Roos & Sjoerd
van der Wardt, Vicki Canham, Caroline Loughrey, Melissa Sanderson, Zachariah
Hetrick, Sophie Green x3, Mr & Mrs J Rowland, Ulrich Wagner
Platinum Level
Ellen van den Assem, Janet, John & Samantha Erasmus, Jenny Taylor,
Edwin & Sandra Teepe, Nishani Naidoo, Tom & Melinda Peters,
Janice Walls, Helen & Kevin Summers, Harriet de Courcy Ling, Vivien
Hunt, Derek & Bev Oberholster, Haley Frank
Gold Level
Julie Kapsalis, N Rama Krishna, Claudia Matthews, Karin & James,
Meggan Liebenberg, Jan Van Schoor, Clarissa Combrinck, Paul & Emma
Spurgeon, David & Annalisa Engelbach, Tim Stanley, Farrah Stanley,
Kerry Stanley, Ami, Paola, Angela & Tiziana, Sunny Wang & Greg
Laux, Danitscha van Zijverden, Akira & Taylor Solomon, Leanne Weissensee,
Michelle & Jade Dave, Gabrielle Séguin, Ulrich Wagner, Flo
Smith
Silver Level
Carsten Mollerup, Carol Austin x6, Nicole & Ashlyn Campbell, Naomi
& Devin Benheim, Megan & Nicholas Hunt, Olivia Jones, Claudia
Bowen, Jun & Wen, Russell Vize, Nathan Sykes, Deon & Mara, Roan
McCallum, Sean & Nick Thomas, Bailey Ramsden, Teresa & Nina
Kilian, Liezel van Zyl, Zanthea Jansen Van Rensburg, Raymond Pieters,
Grace Brown, Tighe Maxwell-Whitely, Shonna Twynham & Timothy Lombard,
Janine Harrison x2, Stephanie McConnell
Renewals
Diamond Level
The IQ Business Group, Stef & Irene Stevense, Anel & Andy Kilchherr,
Ulrich Wagner
Platinum
Sonja Kämpf, Daniel Kämpf, Students of Grade 3, 4 & 5
2007-2008, Ian, Donna & William Cooper
Gold
Students of Grade 3, 4 & 5 2007-2008, Sanet Roos, Susan Dragieff,
Enid Medew, Rosemary Adcock
Silver
Students of Grade 3, 4 & 5 2007-2008, Anthony & George Ioannou,
Mona van Staden, Helen Kotzen, Melissa Sanderson, Thomas Kämpf,
Patrick Kämpf, Zanny Blew
USA here
we come!
Vanessa Bezuidenhout
will soon be departing on her annual trip to the USA. This year speaking
engagements will include a presentation at Safari West (mmartinez@safariwest.com),one
at the home of old friends of De Wildt, Rob and Barbara Dicelly, the
Animal Ark (Bridges to Africa -info@animalark.org) on the outskirts
of Reno and then a range of functions in Denver (LE0PARDSLAIR.AOL.COM).
If you would like to make contact with Vanessa while she is in the USA
or attend one of the functions contact Zeta on cheetah@dewildt.org.za
Should you wish to be on
our newsletter list please contact us:
Cheetah@dewildt.org.za
We'd love to hear from you!!
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