The Illegal Trade In Live Cheetahs Could Be Catastrophic

New research says the growing trend in trading cheetahs as luxury pets in the Middle East is resulting in wild populations of the big cat being driven to extinction. The report adds the fact that nearly two thirds of cheetah cubs that are being smuggled through Africa, die whilst in transit. The good news however is the countries at both ends of the trade have reached an agreement that urgent action is now needed.

The cheetah is famous for being the fastest land animal on the planet. 90 per cent of the cheetah population over the last century has disappeared in response to habitat loss in Asia and Africa. There are less than 10,000 wild cheetahs remaining and their numbers continue to fall. There is an old tradition dating back centuries where trained cheetahs are used as hunting animals in Africa. More recently the Gulf states have increased demand for status symbol pets which has led to a further reduction in populations.

“This whole trade had not been appreciated by the public or by the conservation world. If we do not act now on the trade and land-use change, then we can be certainly losing sub-populations in a few years.” said Nick Mitchell, who contributed to the report for the Convention on the Trade in Endangered Species, the first comprehensive overview of the cheetah trade.

It is difficult to breed cheetahs in captivity and therefore demand from the Gulf is met by snatching wild cubs from the Horn of Africa. There is a distinct sub species living in that part of the world that numbers 2,500. The animals are then trafficked by boat and road into Gulf states. According to Mr. Mitchell, huge numbers of cheetahs appear to die whilst in transit. He adds that people involved in the trade are themselves very poor and are therefore unconcerned with the welfare of cubs. The number of cubs seized in a single seizure can be as high as 30, with 50 to 70 per cent dying on route. There is also demand from Sudan where cheetah skinned shoes confer high status.

There is a sub species of cheetah located in Iran which is extremely threatened with only 40 to 100 left in the wild. Currently the largest surviving cheetah population is in Southern Africa and numbers 6,200. Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia all allow trophy hunting which costs between US$10,000 to $20,000 per animal and numbers over 200 kills per year. South Africa exports approximately 90 captive bred cheetahs to zoos around the world. Many conservationists however are concerned that illegal animals could be passed off as legally traded cheetahs.

The government of South Africa says it will eventually create a cheetah stud book that will facilitate DNA profiling.

Mr. Mitchell has expressed cautious optimism that in response to the report a new working group has been established that would seek to limit the illegal trade in cheetahs primarily through more robust law enforcement.