The Creative
Spirit
Welcome to
The Creative Spirit Newsletter
for July
29, 2001
This week
it's all about wild animals!
LEOPARD
CUBS RESCUED FROM THE SUDAN
The
cubs arrived at Shamwari on the evening of 4th July, nearly 22 hours after being
loaded in their crates in the Sudan for the flights from Khartoum to Nairobi,
then Johannesburg, and then on to Port Elizabeth, with a 45 minute car journey
to Shamwari Game Reserve.
The
cubs traveled in special, International Air Traffic Association crates provided
by Shamwari, on flights generously sponsored by TNT, with TNT reps at every
airport to ensure things went smoothly. BFF’s sanctuary
manager, Tim Parratt, and Shamwari veterinary surgeon, Dr Johan Joubert,
accompanied the cubs all the way from the Sudan.
It was dark at Shamwari when the cubs arrived so they spent their first night at
Shamwari in a recovery cage at Shamwari’s veterinary centre. They had
not needed sedatives on the journey, and greedily tucked into some chicken for
supper before settling down to sleep.
The next morning the cubs were shown their new home. They have a three
acre, natural bush enclosure at the Born Free / Shamwari rescue centre on part
of Shamwari’s award-winning game reserve. A small area of their
enclosure, measuring just 20m x 20m, has been fenced off for them. At just
four months old and 10lbs in weight (about 4-5 bags of sugar) they would soon
get lost in the deep undergrowth.
The doors to their crates were opened and the cubs peered out rather nervously.
It must have looked very strange. Here were lots of plants growing out of
the ground instead of in a few patio planters. And when they stepped
outside and trod onto the grass and sandy soil, this caused a quick retreat too;
it was so unlike the concrete of their foster dad’s patio. Walking as if
on eggshells they tentatively sniffed around, coming back to the watching humans
for reassurance. When the humans eventually left them to get used to their
new home the cubs rushed to the fence and peered after them, not too happy with
this turn of events. However, when they were checked on later they were
slumped over each other, asleep in the sunshine.
By day three, they were already losing their need of human company, and are now
quite confident in their new home. They heard the loud, territorial roars
of two of Born Free’s rescued lions in nearby camps at the Centre, and
listened with interest but no fear. They leap and play constantly.
They were given a dead guinea fowl to eat, feathers and all. They become
very ferocious at meal-times and attacked the dead bird, half excited and half
frightened that it would leap up and attack them! There is a pecking order
in the cubs: Sami the biggest male is top cat and tries to throw his weight
around, but the little female Nimira, will readily stand her ground, having
already chosen her favorite spot in which to eat her meals. Alam, the
smallest male, is named after his first foster dad, Dr Alam Bagi, because he
knows the most effective way to get ahead is to quietly go his own way!
Virginia Lundin, who initially contacted Born Free for help when the cubs were
found near a Lundin Oil site in the Sudan, met the cubs at Johannesburg and
accompanied them to Shamwari. Now back at home in Geneva, looking at her
photos and videos, the emotion of the rescue, after the weeks of planning and
fund-raising, has finally hit her. Virginia feels very moved by the occasion.
"It is incredible to think that these three tiny orphans have survived
against all odds, and are now in such ideal place for them. They even have a
lovely view from their lush enclosure! This could never have been possible
without the offer from Born Free and Shamwari of one of their camps at the Julie
Ward Centre at Shamwari. Born Free also provided support and advice for
the foster parents in Khartoum, which enabled the little cubs to recover from
their weak start and to thrive. Now at Shamwari, they have been given a
chance to grow from the boisterous teen-agers that they are into beautiful
leopards who will be cared for by the dedicated and capable staff at Shamwari.
They are lucky to have so many generous supporters who have made this possible,
as the costs and logistics involved were overwhelming. So many kind people were
committed to helping the cubs reach South Africa, in particular TNT who took on
the burden of the cargo costs and also provided vital assistance at every stop
of the journey. All of this came together on the morning of the cubs’
release: seeing the brothers and sister safe and happy in their wonderful
new home was a very moving experience for me, and one that I will never
forget."
At present they are still being brought indoors at night – it was 45 deg C in
Khartoum and is only 13 deg C at Shamwari – so they are still having human
contact. However, BFF rep Tim Parratt, looking after the cubs, will
monitor their behaviour and know when to step back. With all the other
Born Free rescued cats at Shamwari, the cats quickly revert to wild, independent
behaviour when given access to a more natural environment.
The cubs could live for about 20 years old and must be cared for, for the rest
of their lives. To make a donation to their care click on the
above picture of one of the cubs.
This
article is from the Born Free
website. Please visit their wonderful site for more information.
Have
you ever come across an injured wild animal
and not known what to do?
Wildlife
Rehabilitation Online provides a huge amount of information on wild
animals. They offer a hotline, courses, 'standards' page, wild animal
diets, numerous interviews, and a fantastic 'Kids Korner'. Here are a few
excerpts and links that also have their own websites and their own approach to
the care of wild animals.
"At
least there are places where we know they're not going to buy, they're not going
to sell, they're not going to trade and they're not going to breed."
Circuses
are... "not the way that any child should see animals, being abused! There
is never a tiger in the world who wants to jump through hoops of fire.
Never!"
"Every
single tree that is removed from the forest is the home of some wild creature.
We're letting these kids meet one and look into the eyes of one animal
that is the living embodiment of habitat loss or the victim of habitat loss.
When we leave that school and they think about a red-tailed hawk, they think
about the personal responsibility they have"
Here
is a great place for your children to become more familiar with the need to
preserve our wildlife. It's easy to navigate and lots of fun!
These
links are all excellent places to learn about the responsible care and
conservation of our wildlife.
The
Born Free Foundation
Wildlife
on Easy Street
Turtle
Homes
Candy
Kitchen Rescue Ranch
Wildcare
Fox
Valley Wildlife Center
Quote of
the Day
"Nothing
is so strong as gentleness and nothing is so gentle as real strength."
~ Ralph W. Stockman ~
Best Wishes
from Cheyenne
Background Terragen image by Cheyenne