Cheetah
Conservation Race
Chicago April 6, 2008
April 6, 2008 dawned sunny and warm. What a great day for
the first annual Run for the Cheetah race held in
The Cheetah Conservation Fund’s livestock guardian program was
started in 1994. The program is now incorporating Turkish Kangals into the
program because of its type, breed characteristics, and working traits that are
very valuable.
Dr. Laurie Marker started this Cheetah preservation program from
scratch and it has grown over the years to become a very successful non-profit
organization. Dr. Marker’s program has become the template for a new,
visionary approach to wildlife management.
Dr. Marker has the honor to receive the 2008 Society of Women
Geographers’ Gold Medal for her work as a conservation biologist and for the
founding of the CCF. This prestigious award is only given every three years
and will be presented to her in
The purpose of the CCF livestock dog program is to help farmers
have a way to ecologically preserve the cheetahs without resorting to killing
the cats. In this program, the puppies to be used are taken at 7-8 weeks of
age and placed with the farmer’s livestock to form a fast bond.
There is very little to almost no interaction between the farmer
and his livestock dog. The dogs live with their livestock 24/7. Cheetahs
will run away if they hear a barking dog so the livestock dogs are taught
to posture and bark instead of attacking and trying to kill the Cheetah. This
effort has worked very well and has gone a long way toward preserving the
Cheetah.
Matti Nghikembua attended the Run for the Cheetah race in
As we talked, Matti and I became fast friends. We spoke together about the Kangal dogs, their temperament, natural working ability, and the importance of preserving the Kangals working attributes. He and I will be writing each other and sharing information and photos in the future.
Char on your left, Matti center, Ed on your right and Buffy in the front. Photo 4/6/08.
Matti and I discussed how the
Great Lakes Kangal Club was working toward the
preservation of the Kangals natural working ability. We talked about our
working farm and the Kangal. We also discussed how the dogs work the
livestock and my own preservation practices of the Kangal dog as a working
breed.
The race on Sunday was organized by Jayne Bazos and hosted by
Mayor Daley of
In this photo from left to right: Robert with Gazi, a CCF volunteer, Cat with Argos, Jane Bazos the organizer of the CCF benefit race, Char with Buffy, and Chris with Elektra.
On the left is the adorable Cheetah face painting booth. On the right is the little Cheetah race.
The National Geographic was the major sponsor of the race and
handed out a copy of each of their various magazines. Yes, there was even a
magazine for children. Booths were set up for CCF items such as lovely
award winning photos of the Cheetahs, caps, shirts, books etc.
This was the CCF booth. There were many very nice items for sale such as: stuffed cheetahs, award winning photos of the cheetahs, caps, pencils, shirs, and literature/books on cheetahs.
The Great Lakes Kangal Club participated in this endeavor by
bringing some of the members’ Kangal Dogs to the race. Club members
present were Cat, Chris, Robert, Ed, Nikki, Kat, and Char. Some of the dogs
sported handcrafted Turkish collars for the event.
Each GLKC member was kept busy answering questions about the
Kangal Dog breed as well as the role that these dogs play toward the
preservation of the Cheetah in
One of our club members, Cat (Vice President of the Great Lakes Kangal Club) educating the public about the Kangal dog and the role the dogs play in the preservation efforts of the Cheetah. One of the CCF organizers said, " It was better to have the dogs present than a cheetah because people could interact with the Kangal dogs in ways they could not do with a cheetah. Also, that having the Kangals there was a great way to show people an actual living, breathing, conservation method."
The attendees were also educated about the efforts and dedication
of the Great Lakes Kangal Club to preserve and protect of the working attributes of the Kangal Dog. Discussion
also centered on the protection of the Kangal by the Turkish Government, the
Turkish Kennel Club. It was mentioned that the Kangal is a Turkish National
Treasure to be preserved and protected.
The public enjoyed seeing the Kangal for themselves. Adult
and child alike thrilled at being able to touch and pet a member of the Kangal
breed that is used as guardians to help farmers with Dr. Laurie Marker’s
Cheetah Conservation Livestock Guardian Dog program.
Needless to say, interest was high and the dogs were wonderful. The
Kangals handled all the attention and commotion of the race with ease. The
dogs were dearly loved and were such a huge success that The Great Lakes Kangal
Club has been asked to return each year and assist with the Run for the Cheetah
race in
Read more about the Cheetah Conservation Project: http://www.cheetah.org
Listen to Dr. Marker speak on Chicago Public Radio’s Worldview
http://www.chicagopublicradio.org/Program_WV.aspx?episode=19099
Written by: Char
Luthy – President of the