Sheopur (MP): A day after having their first meal, two of the eight cheetahs named Freddy and Alton, brought from Namibia, were seen frolicking in their quarantine enclosure in Kuno National Park of Madhya Pradesh on Monday.
They were served food for the first time since their arrival in India from the African country.
Sisters Savannah and Sasha also looked cheerful. The four other cheetahs – Obaan, Asha, Cibili, Saisa – also appeared in good spirits, Park authorities said.
The eight felines – five female and three male and aged between 30 to 66 months- were on Sunday evening served food for the first time since their arrival from the African country to India on Saturday, an official said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday released the big cats into a quarantine enclosure at the KNP in Sheopur district as part of a project to revive the population of the animal which became extinct in India in 1952. They were brought from Namibia, 8,000 km away from India.
All of them were served two kg of buffalo meat on Sunday evening. Only one of them ate less, the official said, adding that there was nothing concerning about it.
At the time of their release on Saturday, the big cats looked hesitant. But the initial hesitation appeared to be gradually fading on Monday, he said.
Asked about the Hindi name of a female cheetah ‘Asha’, which means hope, he said it seemed an Indian official might have written it on its cage while the big cats were being brought here.
Veterinarians and experts from India and Namibia are keeping a close watch on the cheetahs in the quarantine enclosure where they will be kept for a month, he added.
