Posts Tagged ‘Cheetah Conservation Botswana’

Nov
28

Cheetah Conservation Botswana

Posted by in Africa,Animal Origins & Fun Facts,Carnivores,community-based conservation,Conservation,Endangered Species,Featured,Field Research

 

Just a quick update from our partners at Cheetah Conservation Botswana (CCB).

 

CCB has been engaged by the government Wildlife department to do training in Northern conflict hot spot areas and set up demonstrations of ideal kraals and livestock guarding dogs in the wildlife rich areas of theOkavango, Makgadikgadi Pans and Chobe. This is an exciting initiative which if successful has the potential to be replicated elsewhere in Botswana.

 

CCB further expanded its farmer training program, with the assistance of the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute. In August, CCB ran its first 5 day farmer training course at the new Tiisano Education Centre. The course aimed to provide training on best practices in range, livestock and wildlife management and increase local capacity to reduce cheetah and other predator conflicts. Certain farmers in the region will also be selected for direct support to improve their methods and be monitored.

CCB Ambassador Cheetah at Mokolodi Nature Reserve

 

A livestock guarding dog clinic was held in the region in collaboration with Maun Animal Welfare Service, with 41 dogs receiving sterilization and vaccinations. After this a bush camp for Kalahari schools took place at the Education Centre and the children learnt about wildlife, the environment and conservation. The new Centre is becoming a great resource for CCB and is an ideal training site for many audiences. Thanks must go to the CCB Ghanzi team and our neighbors for holding back the recent bush fires for over 3 days and preventing all our hard work go up in flames!

Livestock Guarding Dogs at CCB's Ghanzi location

 

As for cheetah! We have recently collared a female with 3 cubs residing on the game farm next to CCB’s Kalahari base. This will be the first female we have collared in the area which is great news as it will significantly add to our understanding of cheetah movements and ecology in the area. The coalition of males collared earlier in the year are from the same area and their movements continue to be monitored. Please visit their News section by linking here

All photos courtesy Houston Zoo

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Jul
22

Spay and Neuter Your Pets

Posted by in Africa,community-based conservation,Endangered Species,Featured,What You Can Do

First a story from Botswana: Cheetah Conservation Botswana works with local communities to keep their livestock guard dogs healthy. The livestock guard dogs are used to keep predators away from the community herds thus removing the need to shoot animals such as cheetahs and leopards which would normally prey on goats and cows. A little health prevention for domestic animals will go a long way in protecting wildlife in the region.

This week Cheetah Conservation Botswana (CCB) commenced a sterilization and vaccination mobile clinic for livestock guarding dogs. CCB offers free veterinary care for working guard dogs protecting livestock against predators. The mobile clinic is assisted by two overseas vets and will be visiting towns across Botswana travelling 600 miles over 4 days.

Earlier in the month of June, CCB launched its 4th annual ‘ Best livestock guarding dog in Botswana’ competition. Livestock guarding dogs are used with sheep, goats and cattle to alert them and protect them against predators. Every year CCB holds a competition to find the best dog in the country. The 2010 competition has just begun and is being …advertised on local radio. Winners win veterinary,hardware and dog supplies, and a trip for the family into the Okavango Delta.

What does that have to do with you? It’s all about you isn’t it? I will tell you anyway. Keeping your domestic pets healthy here at home can also help protect wildlife. We have all seen the stray cat and dog on the street – and they eventually are forced to eat native wildlife such as birds and small mammals when they can.

There is no need for the massive surplus in pet dogs and cats and they do not need to end up in shelters – spay and neuter your pets (unless you are breeding registered pets for competitions), there are plenty of kittens and puppies out there for every household and shelters would love for you to adopt today. Another great option here is H.O.P.E. (Homeless and Orphaned Pets Endeavor) which is a is an all-foster, no kill adoption group based in the Houston area. You may see them out at the local PetSmart on weekends.

Bonus question: To win a free small plush animal from the Houston Zoo – tell us what tv personality always ended his show “Don’t forget to spay and neuter your pets”. Three winners will be notified next week.

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Jul
12

Cheetah Brothers: Cheetah Conservation Botswana

Posted by in Africa,Carnivores,community-based conservation,Endangered Species

Early June 1010:

The two orphaned cheetah cubs being cared for at CCB’s Western Kalahari camp in Ghanzi have been successfully moved to their new home in the Selinda Reserve in Northern Botswana. The two cubs named Tlotlo (Respect) and Kgotso (Peace) came to CCB when they were 6 months old. The cubs had been caught by a community in Southern Botswana and whilst efforts were made to locate their mother, they were not successful. So the brothers moved to the CCB Ghanzi camp in March 2009 and have since been raised with minimal human contact, preparing them for eventual release into the wild.

Last week, the two brothers had medical health checks and were fitted with satellite navigation GPS collars. The collars will enable us to keep track of their progress once released. The CCB team and the young cheetahs then made the 600km journey from Ghanzi to the Selinda Reserve, in Northern Botswana. Their new home is an unfenced 320,000 acre private reserve, abundant with wildlife, including predators such as wild dog and leopard, large herbivores such as elephant and hippo and a wide range of natural prey for the cheetah, such as impala, duiker and hares.

The cheetah behaved extremely well during the journey to Maun by vehicle and then on to Selinda Reserve by light aircraft. Once landed at the dirt airstrip in Selinda, we headed to the 50 acre enclosure set up as their new temporary home. The enclosure allows time for the cheetah to adjust to their new environment, refine hunting techniques and begin to associate the area as their territory. Dr Kyle Good and research assistant Harriet Reeves released the cats next to a natural pan within the enclosure. The brothers exited their boxes calmly and cautiously, as they began to explore their new surroundings. They are now settling in to the temporary enclosure before their final release onto the reserve in a few weeks time. Then for the first time since they were 6 months old they will be able to explore their environment without coming to a fence. However, they will have many obstacles to overcome, including perfecting their hunting abilities and surviving in an area with other predators, but we are confident in their abilities and believe they deserve their chance for freedom. Lorraine Boast, CCB Research Coordinator, will remain at Selinda for several weeks after the release to monitor their progress in their new wilderness home. They will then be monitored by their satellite collars for a further 2 years.

Check back tomorrow for a release update…

One of Houston Zoo's Cheetahs when they were still cubs-2007

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Jul
09

Cheetah Conservation Botswana

Posted by in Africa,Carnivores,community-based conservation,Endangered Species,Featured

The Houston Zoo has been  supporting the work of Cheetah Conservation Botswana since 2008, offering funding for operating support and educational programming. Cheetah Conservation Botswana (CCB) aims to preserve the nation’s cheetah population through scientific research, community outreach and education, working with rural communities to promote coexistence with Botswana’s rich diversity of predator species.  

The project was formed in 2003 to address the threat to the nation’s cheetah population. The major challenge for the project, funded by grant aid and donor support, is one of improving community perceptions towards predators and ensuring that retaliatory killings do not continue to threaten cheetah numbers, while, at the same time, supporting and protecting rural community welfare. Your generous support is already helping us to achieve that.

Only by working together with communities who live side-by-side with predators, with initiatives tailored to meet their needs and priorities, do we hope to foster the attitudes of coexistence that will see cheetahs remain as an essential component in this remarkable ecosystem and as a flagship species for the rich biodiversity of Botswana.  

Over the next few days, we thought we would update you on some exciting news surrounding the release of two orphaned cheetahs. The two cubs named Tlotlo (Respect) and Kgotso (Peace) came to CCB when they were 6 months old. The cubs had been caught by a community in Southern Botswana and whilst efforts were made to locate their mother, they were not successful. So the brothers moved to the CCB Ghanzi camp in March 2009 and have since been raised with minimal human contact, preparing them for eventual release into the wild.

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