The 4^th December is International Cheetah Day.

Cheetahs are most numerous in the wild in Namibia.  Currently there are about 7,100 to 7,500 cheetahs in the wild.  They are the world’s fastest land animal, capable of doing speeds from 0 to 60mph in 3 seconds, which is an incredible feat.   They can go up to 70 mph! They use their tails to steer and change direction when they are running, a bit like a rudder on a boat.

This year, the Cheetah Conservation Fund celebrates its 30^th Anniversary.   It has been working to protect and build healthier ecosystems for cheetahs so that they can survive and thrive in the wild.

For the cheetahs face problems:

1. Habitat loss
2. Human-wildlife conflict
3. The illegal wildlife/pet trade
   
   
   

Support the Cheetah Conservation Fund's project 
to feed orphan cheetahs in Namibia via Global Giving

9 Ways to Help Cheetahs

Support the Cheetah Conservation Fund!  There are a number of ways you can do this:

1. As always spread the word on Social Media about International Cheetah Day, cheetahs, the threats facing them and the Cheetah Conservation Fund.  There are social media materials here.
2. Join the Twitter storm for cheetahs!
3. Donate!  There’s a match fund until 31 December up to the tune of $275,000.    If you donate, you can also choose a gift with your donation while supplies last. 
4. Sponsor a cheetah being cared for at the Cheetah Conservation Fund’s headquarters – the most difficult bit will be choosing which cheetah to sponsor!  They came in as orphaned cubs, or were being kept as pets, or were injured and came to the centre for help.
5. Teachers and students can help spread the word and discover lots about cheetahs  - there are resources here
6. Buy a book on cheetahs
7. Buy a cheetah themed item of clothing such as a t-shirt or hoodie from Bonfire.com
8. Shop at Etsy.com   and a proportion of the sale supports cheetahs and the Cheetah Conservation Fund.
9. Take a look at the charity’s wish list – they need some veterinary supplies too – and see what you can do to provide them.

Visit the Cheetah Conservation Fund's website here

Sign Care2’s petition demanding that they abandon the proposed facility in Australia, and ban the use of exotic skins from its products completely!

Where does the material for handbags and shoes come from?

Well, Hermès, the French fashion brand, want to build a new facility in Australia.  Here 50,000 crocodiles will be born into captivity.  They will be skinned and turned into handbags and shoes.

Incredibly, the project has been granted development and environmental approvals.

How is it that someone can say it’s okay to breed crocodiles into captivity to be skinned for handbags and shoes?

The fashion brand plan to steal eggs from mother crocodiles in the wild.  This will cause fear, stress and aggression.

When the eggs hatch in the factory farm walls, the baby crocs will kept in tight concrete enclosures.  Their movement will be restricted and they will have no stimulation. 

And when they have grown big enough, their skin will be ready to be harvested.

PETA have reported that on other crocodile farms, crocodiles are electrocuted. Their bodies shake and protest wildly.

Some may even still be alive as their necks are slit.  Metal rods are rammed down their spine in an attempt to kill them.  Some have been seen to be alive as the skinning starts.

Hermès says it "has defined and implemented a very strict, science-based, animal welfare policy."

Hmm...really?

Chanel, Vivienne Westwood and Mulberry have banned exotic animal skins in their products.  They use vegan alternatives which look the same.

Tell Hermès that’s not too late to join the right side of history. Sign the petition demanding that they abandon the proposed facility in Australia, and ban the use of exotic skins from its products completely!

Please sign the petition here

Good news for Gorillas

Tea plantation operators will not be allowed in the Kafuga Forest, Uganda.

A court has put the forest under the stewardship of the local district, and they’ve also said the forest must be made into a protected area within a year!

This area is on the borders of gorilla habitat and the forest keeps threats at a distance from the Bwindi National Park.   The park is home to about a third of the last mountain gorillas on earth – less than 1,100. 

 
The Kafuga Forest is safe
image ©CC BY-SA 2.0

And Kafuga Forest is home to hundreds of species of birds, rodents and chimpanzees.

The struggle has been going on for years, with 12 people being arrested for cutting down trees there in 2016.  

The High Court wanted evidence from the envrionmentalists that the suspects had done this inside of the Kafuga Forest – and the area had been mapped, with the financial support of Rainforest Rescue.  This mapping was crucial because it showed the court that the defendants’ claim that they were felling trees on their property wasn’t right.

A quarter of a million people signed a petition with Rainforest Rescue about it and many people donated towards it as well.

Rainforest Rescue report that the next step is to make the forest a protected area in the next year!

Visit Rainforest Rescue's website here.

Help #SnowLeopards

The Snow Leopard Trust have an appeal called Building Resilience:  Together we are Mighty and it’s all about helping to build resilience for snow leopards and local herder families.

Supporters had a goal of $70,000 - six zoo partners were matching this sum and they are The Big Cat Sanctuary, Foundation Le Pal Nature, La Passerelle, Zoo Basel, Zoo Dresden, and the Zoological Society of Hertfordshire.

This goal has been met, and now the Snow Leopard Trust is looking to raise £300,00 in the next 30 days (so roughly by the end of December 2020).

As I type, 822 people have raised $91,332 for Snow Leopards and it's wonderful to see so many big cat lovers coming together to support these majestic, wonderful animals.

How donations will help snow leopards

All our donations and our love for snow leopards will help do a number of things:

• Develop tools to reduce livestock depredation, such as  predator proof corrals.
• Create community-managed programs, like livestock insurance, to offset the costs of living with wildlife and reduce the risk of retaliatory killing.
• Provide training and support for local rangers to patrol key protected areas.

Programmes such as these will help make life easier for snow leopards and help build resilience for the herder families locally as well.

The Snow Leopard Trust’s programmes:

• decrease snow leopard attacks
• safeguard livelihoods
• improve attitudes towards predators                             

This means safer passage for cats as they travel near local communities.  

Visit the Snow Leopard Trust’s website here.

Donate here.

Images on this blog ©Snow Leopard Trust

Rainforest Rescue are asking for donations to help the indigenous Ekuri protect their community forest.

You see, bulldozers appeared without warning and started to clear one of Nigeria’s last remaining forests.  

The Ekuri people rose up quickly – they have a lot of experience defending their forest against the exploitation of others.

The Ekuri people and Rainforest Rescue have developed a powerful coalition over the years.

They want to get the government of Cross River State to abandon its plans for a superhighway to nowhere. 

If it were to be created, that superhighway would impact national parks, forest reserves – and 185 villages along its 270 kilometre route.Sixty Eco-Guards are being trained to protect the forest by Martins Ego and activities of the NGOs Ekuri Initiative and DevCon.

One of the species of wildlife who will be particularly affected if this highway goes ahead is the endangered Cross River Gorillas because the region is home to the Afi Wildlife Sanctuary. 

Please help the Ekuri people defend their forest home and protect it for people and wildlife – especially the gorillas! Find out more and donate here