Cheetah in Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park falls ill; undergoing kidney treatment
Asiatic cheetahs were found in India in the past but the species was declared extinct by 1952. The world's first intercontinental translocation project aims at reintroducing the big cats in the country.
FollowSasha, one of the eight cheetahs that were flown in from Namibia last year as part of an ambitious reintroduction programme, is unwell. It is reportedly said that Sasha has been found with a kidney infection at Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park.
On Monday, the female cheetah showed signs of fatigue and weakness during daily monitoring. She was soon tranquilised and shifted to the quarantine enclosure. A health check-up revealed she had kidney-related problems and was dehydrated.
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Speaking to reporters, Prakash Kumar Verma, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), Kuno National Park said that Sasha is under observation and all other cheetahs are fine.
A team of doctors led by Dr Atul Gupta from Van Vihar in Bhopal along with necessary machinery has arrived at Kuno. "Wildlife experts from Namibia and South Africa have also been consulted for her treatment," he said.
Asiatic cheetahs were found in India in the past but the species was declared extinct by 1952. The world's first intercontinental translocation project aims at reintroducing the big cats in the country.
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Under this project, all eight cheetahs were released in Kuno by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 17 last year, coinciding with his birthday. In November, they were moved to a larger enclosure and were about to be released into the wild.
Earlier, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had said that tourists can visit Kuno National Park from February to get a glimpse of the cheetahs.
