12 NAT GEO KIDS^ •^ JUNE / JULY 2022
TEXT BY
RACHAEL BALE
PHOTOGRAPHS
BY NICHOLE
SOBECKI
How conservationists are saving these cats from smugglers
RESCUE
CHEETAH
In the back seat of an SUV, a cheetah cub bares his teeth and hisses.
Around his neck is a rope, which not too long ago had been used to
tie him to the base of a tree. The ridge of fur down the cheetah’s spine is
standing straight up, and the animal’s breathing is fast and shallow. His
eyes dart in every direction, taking in his surroundings.
The people peering into the vehicle mean only one thing to the
alarmed cheetah: danger. Stolen from his mother to be someone’s pet,
the wild cat probably hasn’t had many good interactions with humans.
What the cheetah, called Astur, doesn’t know is that the faces outside
are friendly—these people have come to rescue him.