Where is toki the cheetah

All he could do was teach and care for them to the extent he could, and hope that nothing bad would happen. One time, Toki got mauled by a mother warthog. His was injured in a few places, including his tail - which cheetahs use to balance themselves properly while running.

Luckily, there was an experienced vet who was visiting the reserve at the time, and Toki received good medical aid while Simon and Sambu stood watch. With lots of TLC from his brother and his human friends, Toki made it through with a full recovery.

The cheetahs continued learning their lessons well: which animals they could use as prey, which to avoid. Sambu finally overcame his fear of water with Toki's help and encouragement, and mustered up the courage to jump across a small river bank. Once, a few Lewa staff who Sambu and Toki did not know were asked to act hostile towards them - Simon was worried that the cheetahs would be too trusting towards all humans.

He said that he could never forgive himself if Sambu and Toki were killed by poachers. On the other, it left a ray of hope. With no evidence of his death, no bones, no remains of any kind, it was just possible he had left the boma by whatever method the leopard had been coming and going, and was alive, but ranging free.

And that is where we stand today. If free ranging, we would have expected a sighting of Toki through the guides and security staff on Ol Pejeta, though with at least 33 cheetah now living wild on Ol Pejeta ,there is room for confusion.

There is also a strong likelihood that if Toki did leave the enclosure, he would have avoided already occupied cheetah territories and kept moving. Frankly, the chances of him surviving beyond the fence are low, with community lands, man and his dogs, all trying to scratch a living from the dry northlands. But it is possible. Realistically, I have little hope that Toki is still living He may have been killed by the leopard and in the tangle of thorn and scrub our search failed to pick up any sign of his body.

He may have escaped the boma and been killed by wild male cheetah two male cheetah have been killed in this way on Ol Pejeta over the past year, neither of them Toki. He may have walked beyond the conservancy, through one of the elephant corridors as he did when we were working with him there five years ago and beyond. He may still be there. For some time he has not worn an active radio collar.

The decision was made to minimise his interaction with human beings and let him lead a natural life, peaceful and undisturbed. He has done this for the past four years. In the wild, the vast majority of cheetahs do not make it past their first birthday, and very few make it beyond their third. That Toki has lived for at least eight years is testament to the care and support of Lewa and Ol Pejeta Wildlife Conservancies : His legacy is to have increased awareness and brought much needed financial support to the reserves and in so doing helped all the wildlife there.

In Ol Pejeta the cheetah population alone has grown from twelve animals when Toki first arrived five years ago, to thirty three today. His legacy to us has been invaluable, learning about the specifics surrounding the rehabilitation of large predators in East Africa, but a great deal more from an emotional and moral standpoint. I will end this report by quoting Stephen, who shared his thoughts with us after we searched in vain for Toki in December.

He taught me to stand up for myself and not to depend on others or expect others to help me survive. Toki was a survivor". Like Dislike. Guest Guest. What an update - it must be hard for Simon to realise that Toki may be dead after all his time spent rearing and nurturing him. Thanks for posting Doogs. I know it's quite sad but he may be still alive, you never know. If he is dead at least he got to lead a pretty normal cheetah life as opposed to being caged up somewhere after their mother was killed by a lion.

At least he got that chance. We will never forget him and Sambu and the programmes of Simon hand rearing them, looking after them teaching them how to hunt then releasing them into the wild which was both wonderful and terribly sad after what happened to Sambu.

I agree with you Doogs, he could be still alive Even a couple of years in the wild must be better than life in a cage, but still I would have loved them to have found him Ttm x. Re: Toki Update whitestarling Fri Feb 11, am. True Doogs, but at least they got some time in the Wild, and who knows Toki may still be around some where. Thanks for posting WS. Re: Toki Update littlewid Fri Feb 11, pm. That was an emotional read Doogs, so it's hard to imagine how Simon must have felt, although he is always so practical.

I am hoping that Toki is still alive especially as they haven't found any evidence of his death. Toki and Sambu have been so special to so many people it will be a sad day if Toki has gone but as Simon and others have said, at least Toki did get to live relatively free and safe and enjoy his life rather than being caged.

I am still keeping my fingers crossed even if it's not a realistic hope. I was overjoyed and deeply touched while watching your Nature programme on the orphaned cheetah cubs. Even with a radio-tracking device attached to a collar round his neck so that his minders know where he is, Toki has continued to use up those nine lives fast. He would have died two-and-a-half years ago - but for the courageous intervention of Nangunye - when he was set on by three male cheetahs who wanted him off their patch.

Ironically, he was saved by the leather collar from which the radio-tracking device's aerial pokes incongruously skyward. The cheetahs could not bite through it to deliver the fatal wound. Rescued by Nangunye and rushed to the Conservancy hospital, Toki was given round-the-clock care by a veterinary team and pulled through, defying those who said he would be unable to walk, let alone hunt.

King says: "We always feared he would remain slight and frail from his difficult start in life. Instead, Toki is a powerful cheetah; thigh muscles strong and solid; back and shoulders flexible and full of grace. It made me realise he would have to be moved somewhere else to be given a chance. Toki was tranquillised and flown to the Ol Pejeta Rhino Conservancy. But he resented the miles of electric fence that were keeping predators out and paced up and down in one corner. When the decision was taken to let the cheetah roam in the 90,acre reserve which surrounded Ol Pejeta, tragedy threatened almost immediately.

First it was discovered that a female cheetah, which it was hoped would be a mate for Toki, was behaving eccentrically - it attacked King and Nangunye - because it had rabies.

It died shortly afterwards. Then, drawn to the gaps in the reserve fence which have been left to allow elephants to follow their migration trails, Toki escaped into open country, where he became an immediate target for poachers and farmers defending their herds of juicy cheetah-meal goats.

Worse, no signal was being picked up from the transmitter and a plane was scrambled to locate him. King then sped off in his Range Rover to reach Toki. If we didn't get to him soon, that would have been the end of him. Today, the cheetah is back in the 4,acre reserve, safe from harm but destined never to roam the wilds of Africa. He is very close to my heart. Skip to main content Skip to footer site map. Toki walking in Ol Pejeta with Simon, in background.

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