Original Article: https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/cheetah-cub-death/

Today, Iran is the only place in the world where Asiatic cheetahs can be found in the wild. It is believed that only a dozen of these big cats are left.

In 2001, the government launched a protection program for this wildlife species with the support of the United Nations.

But after the country’s first-ever birth of an Asiatic cheetah in captivity last May, two of the three cheetah cubs died.

First-ever Birth of an Endangered Asiatic Cheetah in Captivity by Caesarean Operation

In December 2017, rescuers found an eight-month-old cheetah in a house as related by Jamshid Parchizadeh, a graduate research assistant at The Global Wildlife Conservation Center and a doctoral student at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse, New York.

It was believed that she was going to be smuggled by wildlife traffickers.

In 2021, the conservationists started to introduce the female cheetah to a male cheetah that came from Turan National Park. The following year, the union of the two cheetahs resulted in the birth of three male cubs.

It was a triumph for Iran, which has been hoping that the female cheetah they had rescued years ago and her cubs would lead to the eventual increase in the Asiatic cheetah population.

Also, the female cheetah’s capability to give birth means she would be fertile for the next five years.

The Tragic Blows to Iran’s Cheetah Conservation Efforts

Born by caesarean section on May 1, the three cubs were Iran’s first birth of an Asiatic cheetah in captivity.

It was such an important event since cheetahs are now a critically endangered species, with most of them wiped out by hunting, habitat loss, and food scarcity caused by humans’ over-hunting.

Asiatic cheetahs are relatives of African cheetahs, with the only difference in color, size, and thickness of coat. Asiatic cheetahs are smaller and paler with thicker fur and more slender legs. But when it comes to speed, both cheetah species can reach up to 128 kilometers per hour in running time.

The historic range of Asiatic cheetahs once encompassed Central Asia from the Middle East to Russia, according to the International Society of Endangered Cats Canada. Now, they exist only in Iran.

However, Iran was unprepared for the first sad blow to its conservation efforts when one of the three cubs died just days after the litter’s birth. Its death was caused by left lung malformations and lung adhesion according to Dr. Behrang Ekrami, a veterinarian at the Asian Cheetah Breeding Center.

But, two weeks later, another tragedy struck. A second cheetah cub died.

“The cause of death of the cub is being investigated and the result will be announced after the post mortem.” News agency IRNA was informed by Department of Environment official Hassan Akbari.

Further, according to Ali Salajegheh who also represents the department, a veterinarian from Indonesia would be arriving to help ensure that the third cub would survive. Iran had been criticized for the lack of experts or veterinarians who are skilled in taking care of cheetahs in captivity.

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Source: The Animal Rescue Site Blog