A female Cheetah ‘Shasha’ brought from Namibia to Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park died on Monday due to renal infection, said a senior forest officer.
Sasha was among three cheetahs, who were not released into the wild earlier this March.
Cheetah conservation fund spokesperson Susan Yannetti confirmed the death and said, “Sasha died at around 8am on Monday. At this point, renal failure is suspected. This is what happens with cheetahs, that is why we say they are delicate creatures. They are prone to renal disease.”
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“The autopsy will reveal the real cause of death,” she added.
The Indian forest officials and MP forest officials are yet to comment on the issue.
Earlier, MP principal chief conservator of forest (PCCF), (wildlife) JS Chauhan had said that Sasha was suffering from renal infection, but she was recovering well.
“She was in quarantine BOMA and about to shift into a soft predator-free enclosure. She was being provided buffalo meat due to weakness,” Chouhan had said a month ago.
The veterinarians found the symptoms of dehydration and renal infection in Sasha.
Cheetahs were translocated to India on September 17 at Kuno National Park under world’s first intercontinental translocation project.
As of now, four cheetahs from Namibia were released into the wild while four were in enclosures.
Now, three cheetahs remain in the bigger enclosure and only one of them will be released in the wild.
The 12 cheetahs from South Africa are in quarantine and will be released in soft predator-free BOMA.