Cheetah Cubs Health Spot-On at Monarto Safari Park

Three cheetah cubs born in March at Monarto Safari Park have had their first visit from the vet who declared their health is 'spot-on.' The check allowed vet Jerome Kalvas and keeper Michelle Lloyd to determine the genders of the eight and nine week old cubs.

“We have a boy and a girl as well as the female foster cub. It’s great news,” said Jerome.  

During the health check the three cubs were weighed, microchipped, vaccinated and given a body condition score with Jerome giving each one the clean bill of health. After their health check they were returned to the safety of their den alongside mother Qailee.

The cubs are a mixed family made up of two cubs born to Qailee and another cub born to her sister Quella. As is common with cheetahs Quella did not produce enough milk after giving birth to a single cub. This can cause a cheetah to abandon its cub so she can breed again that season.

In Australian first keepers at Monarto Safari Park took on caring for Quella's cub until Qailee gave birth when they cross-fostered this cub in to the litter. With assistance from international zoos the cub was successfully added to the litter and Qailee was quick to adopt her and begin to feed her.

“As we’d expect, the cross-fostered cub, who is one week older, is slightly heavier than the other two. All three are in excellent health and have a good body condition.

“It’s interesting to compare the cubs as the one that was bottle fed for one week has less of a mantle than the other two. The mantle is a thick silvery stripe of fur that runs down the Cheetah’s back and is used for camouflage in the wild. Her mantle will eventually grow as big and bushy as the others,” finished Jerome.

With just 8000 cheetah left in the wild the species is increasingly threatened. Zoos SA (operator of Monarto Safari Park) provide support for the Cheetah Conservation Fund. The fund is established to benefit the ecosystem on which Cheetahs depend as well as running a Lifestock Guarding Dogs (LGD) to reduce livestock losses to predators.

Later this year Monarto Safari Park will open their expansive Wild Africa habitat with a luxury hotel overlooking wide plains with herd animals which visitors will move through in open-sided vehicles. This new area will include a new display for a coalition of cheetah.