A Bittersweet Note to End 2025

It is hard to explain the waves of emotions that I went through at the end of 2025. So let me tell you how the story unfolded.

In the early evening of the 30 December I arrived at the field camp in Meibae Conservancy,

Samburu County. It had been a long two-day travel from Nairobi due to car issues that required mechanical assistance, so I was really looking forward to a relaxing couple of days at the camp with two of the dog handlers who were working through the holidays. Shortly after I arrived, I received a call. A safari guide reached out to ask what I could do to help. For the last couple of days he had been seeing a lone cheetah cub in the same place. The cub was looking thin and the guide had been told that the cub’s mother was last sighted on the 27^th. He was told that no vet was available until after the new year and that he feared the cub would die if there was no intervention.

It is not my mandate as a researcher to make decisions on the fate of a cub like this, so I began reaching out to our network of partners. We called rangers from Buffalo Springs National Reserve and the KWS veterinarian from our area. We offered our assistance in the evaluation of the situation and digging deeper into the separation of the cub from its mother. It was confirmed by the rangers that the cub had last been seen with an adult 4 days earlier. I then received several different views on the families from the area.

One report claimed that a mom, dad, and three cubs had been in the area for several weeks. I knew this could not be true because male cheetahs do not stay with the mother and cubs. Subsequent reports stated that there were two moms, one with one cub and one with two. As I received this information, I knew I needed to go to the ground, so I shared everything with the veterinary team and made plans to meet and search with one of the Reserve Rangers. I also reached out to local guide groups to see if I could get photos of the mom(s) and cubs that would allow me to ID them. A KWS vehicle was also searching for the family/ies.

In the morning, we departed our field camp at 545 AM. We collected one of the rangers who, unfortunately, had just returned from leave and knew little more than us about the story of the cub. We searched where we were told to, but saw no sign of them. The ranger received a call that the mom and three cubs were sighted – as we arrived, the guides pointed to a thick, rocky area and said she had just taken the cubs inside. This, we thought, meant that the mom recovered her cub and the family was together. Only one mom was seen, but if the mom of two adopted the one, she would keep it safe. We dropped off the ranger and began to head back home – it was about 10:30 AM.

The phone rang, and the BSNR warden asked where we were. The lone cub was seen by the KWS vehicle, and they were asking us to return. As we drove up to the bush, the cub was fairly calm and looked in fair condition. But as we got a closer look, the tummy was thin and the hip bones were protruding – this baby was hungry. A guide who saw my request for recent photos sent me stills and video of the mom with 3 cubs and shared a story that two cubs had been killed and eaten by a leopard a few weeks ago. This mom joined another mom for a short time, and they had 4 cubs between them. After the mom and single cub separated from the others, she made an impala kill on the 26^th, and there was a lovely video of the mom and cub sharing the kill. Later in the evening, the leopard was seen with the stolen kill. The lone cub was first seen on the 27^th, sitting under a tree and calling for its mother. For the next 4 days the cub remained in the area alone. This guide said that the other mother also has 3 (not 2) cubs, and she moved southwest of the Simba Lodge – she was seen on the morning of the 30^th.

The KWS vehicle asked if we could wait and watch the cub until the veterinary unit could arrive – it was 11 AM. I had brought some water and snack food, but we had no lunch. We stayed with the cub as more confirmations of the family structure came through. Every couple of hours we were told the vet unit would arrive shortly. It would not have been advisable to dart the cub in the heat of the day, but it would have been nice to have gotten a break, or for someone to have brought us some lunch. We did not dare leave the cub in case it moved and could not be found again when the vets arrived. The cub moved from shade to shade within a small area, but when it lay under a bush it was hard to find. At one point after calling, it slipped away and we thought we had lost it. Luckily, we did find it a short distance into the thicker bush and rocky area. My truck got a real workout today!

At 430PM the reserve vehicle came with water, and shortly after that, a KWS team arrived followed by the vet unit. In the flood of vehicles and the noise of talking, the cub was

frightened and ran even deeper into the thick bush. We followed at a reasonable distance to keep it in our sight as the KWS veterinary team prepared a plan for immobilization – the only way we could fully assess the cub’s health. The vet team was able to pull their vehicle close enough to the cub to take the shot. We followed the cub when it ran again and remained near it as the drugs took effect. It was a light dose of immobilization drugs, but the already weak cub fell into sleep. The vet team sprang into action, assuring it was in the shade, applying cooling gauze pads between the toes and inner thigh, starting an IV drip with fluids and a little glucose and vitamins to give the cub energy – now confirmed to be a girl. After consulting with the head veterinarian, the

decision was made to take the cub to Nairobi. I had wished that we could feed the cub and try to introduce it to the other family since she had travelled with them for a couple of weeks.

So, my mixed emotions stemmed first from the mixed stories we received about the families, and the first wave of relief we felt when the mom with three cubs was thought to have collected the orphan. Next, the disappointment that we had nearly given up on it when it was found. Finally, the joy of knowing that we saved the life of the cub, but the disappointment that it was to be taken to the orphanage without the chance to feed it and try to take it to the other mother. I am so grateful that the guide called me so we could assist with this rescue – it is highly unlikely that the cub would have survived more nights alone. I am grateful for the rangers and vet team that heeded our call to assist – even on New Year’s Eve Day. The cub arrived in Nairobi after midnight and was handed over to the vet in charge there.

I will go to collect our crate and to discuss the possibility of still trying to bring the cub back to Samburu. This depends on the health of the cub after full vet assessment and on the ability for BSNR rangers, KWS and ACK staff to be able to track the other family. There is so much at stake with this little cub in the coming weeks.

Without the support from our ACK supporters, this rescue would not have been possible. I am so grateful for your support.