Cheetah Conservation Race

April 6, 2008 dawned sunny and warm. What a great day for the first annual Run for the Cheetah race held in Chicago , IL . This day proved to be a real treat for those who had just emerged from a long, hard winter and attended the festivities. The Cheetah Foundation held its Run for the Cheetah 5 K race along the beautiful lakefront in Chicago to raise funds/donations to help preserve the Cheetah. 

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 Chicago this coming May.

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 Chicago . He is a Senior Research Assistant with the CCF. During our discussions, Matti commented that Namibia has the largest population of Cheetahs in Africa and holds 95 % of the countries cats. 

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 Chicago . The event catered to the family with an emphasis on the children present which was a special treat. There was a Cheetah Face Painting booth that was a hit with the children, a kid’s booth where they could color and a youth race as well. Jayne said that a large part of their outreach is to teach children the value of our wildlife heritage.  

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 Africa . Participants in the race as well as the general public in attendance were educated about the Kangal dog as a breed, temperament, working ability, and what the difference is between a Kangal and an Anatolian. We brought a book containing prints of photographs of working Kangal Dogs from Turkey , Namibia , and the US . People really enjoyed seeing the dogs doing their jobs.  

One of our club members 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 Chicago . We support the Cheetah Foundation’s efforts and we pledge to help raise funds and awareness for the CCF.

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 GLKC

       Misty Acres Kennel

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