Chilling out with cheetahs – using nature for stress relief, joy and pure awesomeness!

I was recently visiting family in South Africa and promised to share pictures from our incredible trip to the Kwa Cheetah Breeding Project. My sister Woo and I decided to do the early morning 50 minute bush walk with Skye, one of the male cheetahs. All I can say is wow! What an experience!

I’ve written about how nature and exercise can help to boost mood and reduce stress and this certainly did this and more. I hope you get to enjoy some of it via my photos.

 

Here I am getting to meet Skye before we head out. And what a meeting it was – he purrs just like a kitty cat only louder and deeper! Incredible first encounter!

 

Skye’s sister comes over to say hi and can I come for a walk too.

 

We took Skye for a 50 minute walk through the bush around Kwa Cheetah – or maybe he took us for a walk! At one stage he spotted his sister and bolted to say hello and I got kind of dragged behind him. Here is with the ranger and my sister Woo.

 

Woo getting to know Skye

 

Skye has spotted a warthog in the far distance

 

Woo and I with Skye

 

After the early morning bushwalk we all got to spend the next two hours watching cheetahs being trained to run and hunt, and various other fun activities. This is my 7-year old niece in one enclosure – fearless!

 

Of course we both highly recommend Kwa Cheetah Breeding Project: “The main goal behind the project is not to sell cheetahs to zoos or any other likewise place, but to release our cats back into the African wilderness.”

Here are some stats on why they do what they do: “The reason we are trying to do this is because there are only between seven and ten thousand cheetahs left worldwide. About two thousand cheetahs are dying every four years due to three main factors: natural predators (like lions and hyenas), humans (poaching is a big one, so is farming) and poor genetics. You can read all the stats here.

Next time you’re in South Africa, go and visit – you’ll be giving back and making a difference, and you’ll find you’ll get back so much more: joy, awe and an amazing sense of calmness!