WILD'bout-LIFE

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Welcome to CCF

Welcome to the Cheetah Conservation Fund - Click to enlarge

"We see a world in which cheetahs live and  flourish in coexistence with people and the environment."

CCF Vision Statement

Road to CCF with the Waterberg Plateau in the background - Click to enlargeAbout 31/2 hours north of Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, is Elandsvreugde, or Elands Joy, a farm where the Cheetah Conservation Fund is located.  The farm is in a beautiful area framed by the majestic Waterberg Plateau.

Aerial view of CCF - Click to enlarge

Last year, thanks to a much-needed grant, the CCF inaugurated new facilities.  I was so impressed to see how well organized and taken care of everything is. 

With just about 12,000 cheetahs left in the wild, worldwide, I couldn't help but think that their fate could very well depend on the work being done by Laurie Marker and her team.

Entrance to CCF's Visitor Center - Click to enlargeThe CCF Visitor Center holds a large room where area farmers meet to discuss issues that are important to them and to the CCF.  There are also maps where one can observe the comings and goings of radio-collared wild cheetahs.

Outside the Visitor Center is the "Preyground", where children can experience what being a cheetah is like by playing games that imitate cheetah behaviour.

The CCF Vision Statement - Click to enlargeView of the Education Center - Click to enlargeView of the Education Center - Click to enlarge

I wish I had been able to spend more time at the Education Center.  That place is full of information such as conservation, the history of cheetahs, their anatomy and their relationship with man.  I observed and admired the amazing bone structure of the fastest land mammal on earth.  I tried an exercise bicycle which challenges humans to reach the 60mph+ speeds a cheetah can reach; I couldn't.  And I had fun looking at the genealogical tree of cats.  There is something there for everybody!

View of the Education Center - Click to enlargeView of the Education Center - Click to enlargeView of the Education Center - Click to enlarge

Sign to the CCF Research and Education Center - Click to enlargeThere is also Cheetah View, where the the Research & Education Center is located.  I had fun there meeting students of a program run by Round River in the US.   

Finally, there's the lab, the meat room, the offices, the staff quarters and my favorite: any place where animals were kept --sheep, goats, horses, dogs and cheetahs.

A view of the staff and volunteer quarters - Click to enlargeAnd so, on March 11th, 2001, four EarthWatch volunteers --including me, arrived at the CCF, got settled in our two 'rondovals', and embarked on this adventure.  

For me, this was the realization of a dream.  I was full of excitement, but also fears.  I wanted to help the cheetahs, but I knew that there was a strong likelihood that I would have to encounter some ugly things.  Animals get hurt, animals get sick, animals die, and when animals are in conflict with man, all of these are real possibilities.  I wasn't sure whether I had the courage to deal with them.  I wasn't sure whether reality would crush my dream.   

Early evening at CCF - Click to enlargeOn my first night at Elandsvreugde, I went to sleep without knowing that these two weeks would leave an indelible mark in my life, a beautiful --and very real-- mark in my life.

 

[ Home ] [ Up ] [ Tour the CCF ] [ Meet the Cheetahs ] [ The Dog Program ] [ Caring for Cheetahs ] [ Curing & Moving ] [ Trapping, Tracking, etc. ] [ The Tough Part ] [ And So... ]

  crocsetal

Created in  December, 1999, and updated in May, 2001