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Injured cheetah rescued from Abu Dhabi street
posted on 30/05/2011: 126 views
A nine-month-old cheetah was found chasing a rooster as it roamed the streets of Karama in Abu Dhabi Sunday morning. However, its injury and poor medical condition were slowing it down, according to residents.
One of the residents who saw the cheetah with a thick chain around its neck, immediately contacted the Abu Dhabi Police and an animal activist, Raghad Auttabashi.
Raghad is the founder and a volunteer of the Al Rahma Animal Welfare and Rescue Society (which has so far rescued hundreds of stray cats and dogs from the streets of Abu Dhabi).
Speaking to Gulf News about the incident, Raghad explained that upon reaching the scene, the police, a trapping company and officials from the environment agency had already caught and placed the cheetah in a cage, in order to prevent it from running away.
"The cheetah's left front leg was badly injured, and it looked dehydrated, skinny and malnourished. I just hope that the cheetah's previous owner did not de-claw it, otherwise that would be highly inhumane," said Raghad, who immediately contacted the privately owned Abu Dhabi Wildlife Centre (ADWC) — who are known for their experience in dealing with endangered and wild animals.
Care
The cheetah was immediately transferred to the ADWC, where it received plenty of water, food and vitamins.
Ronel Smutts, the director of the ADWC, told Gulf News that upon reaching the centre, the cheetah was dehydrated, hungry and traumatised.
"The animal was obviously privately owned by one of the villa owners in Karama, and did not get enough exercise nor the proper food, calcium and vitamins it requires. When it first arrived, it couldn't put any weight on its left front leg, which our vets will re-examine tomorrow. For now we gave the cheetah pain medication, and want it to get plenty of love and rest," said Smutts.
The injured leg could have been a result of the cheetah jumping over a fence as it tried to catch its prey (the rooster), assumed Smutts. "We will take X-rays of its leg tomorrow in order to see whether it needs surgery," she said.
New home
The ADWC has also agreed to offer the baby cheetah a new home, which currently provides sanctuary for orphaned and sick animals, and works to ensure the continued survival of all endangered species.
In collaboration with other government agencies, the Abu Dhabi Police ensured the animal was captured and transferred to appropriate care, in accordance with regulations and best practices, said Major General Mohammad Al Awadi Al Menhali, General Director of Human Resources and Police Operations.
The Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD) said it did not have any role in capturing the cheetah. Although EAD had hosted an office of Cites (Convention on the Illegal Trade of Endangered Species) in the past, now it is under the Ministry of Environment and Water, a spokesperson said. Despite repeated attempts, officials from the ministry or Cites could not be reached for comment.
The Municipality of Abu Dhabi City said it was not involved in the capture of the animal. "The municipality only received a phone call from Al Rahma Society Animal Welfare regarding the cheetah in Al Karama Area, and we only directed them to contact the police and competent authorities," a spokesperson said.
"The municipality does not know where the cheetah came from and up to now we have not received any call about [a] missing animal," she said.
Federal law
Being an endangered species, the cheetah comes under Cites (Convention on the Illegal Trade of Endangered Species).
The 2002 Federal Law number 11 on Regulating and Controlling International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora prohibits the sale or display of the creatures in public, without the necessary legal paperwork.
Offenders could face fines of between Dh5,000 and Dh50,000 and a jail term of between three and six months.
Roughly 5,000 species of animals and 28,000 species of plants are listed in the Cites appendices.
Timeline: Animals roam streets
• May 29, 2011: An injured cheetah is found roaming the streets of Karama in Abu Dhabi.
• March 8: A young monkey, believed to be a baboon, was spotted running between parked cars at a petrol station in Silicon Oasis, Dubai.
• January 11: A pupil was bitten by a snake in Mushrif Park in Dubai while on a school trip.
• December 7, 2010: Cheetah is spotted roaming the streets of Sharjah near Radisson SAS Hotel.
• March 2: A snake was spotted in a public school in the Shamal area, Ras Al Khaimah, causing chaos in the school.
• December 27, 2009: A python measuring more than a metre spread panic among Al Naba'a residents in Sharjah before being caught by the police.
• January 14, 2007: A runaway baby crocodile created panic among residents of Al Rams area in Ras Al Khaimah after it was spotted by an Emirati boy on the beach.
• November 15, 2005: A former Dubai resident, on holiday here, was outraged after she spotted a tiger looking out of a 4X4 car near the Mall of the Emirates. – Gulf News
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