{"id":1636,"date":"2015-05-10T12:10:00","date_gmt":"2015-05-10T12:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mywalkabout.net\/2015\/05\/10\/the-speed-of-a-cheetah"},"modified":"2021-09-28T05:43:44","modified_gmt":"2021-09-28T12:43:44","slug":"the-speed-of-a-cheetah","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mywalkabout.net\/?p=1636","title":{"rendered":"the speed of a cheetah"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since we didn’t see any big cats while on our Botswana safari ( our guide told us that they live in another part of the park), the group decided to check out a local place in Zambia called Mukuni Big Five<\/a>. The brochure claimed it to be a free range sanctuary for young cheetahs and lions.<\/p>\n

Set on top of a hill over looking Livingstone town, I wondered what the day would entail.<\/p>\n

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After a brief introduction over morning tea we are told about the animals placed here. Injured or abandoned in the wild from poachers, Mukuni Big Five raises them in a safe environment, with the goal of rehabilitating them back into the wild.<\/p>\n

Our first experience is to witness the speed of the cheetah, the world’s fastest land mammal. We are taken out to what appears to be a wooden hitching post for horses, only squared. As we enter, one of the guys brings out a young cheetah.<\/p>\n

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A toy that appears to look like a small animal is put onto a string. We are asked if we are ready, then seconds later, the toy is released, and the young cheetah races past us chasing it.<\/p>\n

The first time all I see is dust, the animal is so fast. Luckily, the animals love racing, so we get to see them run around us multiple times.<\/p>\n

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It was an amazing start, but what comes next blew my mind. For now though, witness the speed and grace of the cheetahs at Mukuni.<\/p>\n\n\n

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