(THECOUNT) — You’re taking a quick nap in the jungle when suddenly you’re approached by a large Cheetah. Oh what to do. In one guy’s case it was to let the animal firstly groom him and then join in on the siesta. Sorry if you were expecting something a bit more dramatic.
The video was posted to the Internet a few years ago but it was new to us so we thought maybe it might be new to you or maybe you’re one of the 10M viewers that has already seen it and are willing to watch the overload of cuteness again.
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The following is from the liners of the original video posted to Youtube back in 2015:
This is a bit long because it’s mainly for me to remind me how WONDERFUL Eden is. Wanted to show you how loving, interactive, and affectionate some Cheetahs are. Skip to 03:00 minutes to see Eden the Cheetah snuggle.
This is Eden, the most adorable, nicest, most friendly Cheetah I know. She’s just about PURRfect. She’s beautiful, SUPER nice, in fantastic condition, has a face like a living Disney character, an animal athlete, supper fast, a huntress, and has the most hypnotizing purr I’ve ever heard from a cat. I met Eden summer of 2014 volunteering at Cheetah Experience in South Africa but never spent much time with her. During the summer 2015 I did and discovered just how nice she really is.
True to Eden’s nature, she warmed up to me in days and ended up really liking me, so much so that I was able to trust her completely. The more she felt comfortable with me, the more she treated me just like another Cheetah which included the grooming, nibbling, biting, pacifying, purring, laying on me, and sleeping… cuddling up close to me. I’m amazed how much more interactive and affectionate Cheetahs are compared to the avg domesticated cat.
This is the 2nd Cheetah I easily bonded with at CE and makes me wonder how special this species really is. I’m betting many Cheetahs in this world have loving personalities like this. I couldn’t possibly bond so soon with a lion, leopard, tiger, or puma. I had no idea Cheetahs were so special. I’ve fallen in love with them. It’s an incredible species that truly deserves help, support, and protection.
I was honored that Eden liked me so much. But I think she is this way with everyone who lets her. There is no one she won’t like. The more you encounter her, the more relaxed she gets and the more she trusts you. She eventually learned my tolerance levels to her licking, grooming, biting and nibbling and adjusted her licks and bite pressure so I would allow her to do it. That’s pretty observant on her part. My dog learned not to bite hard in the exact same way.
Cheetahs LOVE to groom and nibble and it helps in bonding with them if you let them. It still hurt and I got slightly bloodied on my face, lips, chin and ears, but it’s what I allowed to happen in order to bond with her.
Unfortunately… today Eden is not part of the breeding program at CE due to her best friend, who is a handicapped Cheetah named Faith. Eden is basically a service therapy Cheetah to Faith who developed spinal meningitis as a cub that affected her development. Eden is like PTSD therapy for a crippled Cheetah. Eden is great therapy for ANYONE, regardless if you have a problem or not. You can’t help but fall in love with her, and she you.
These two cheetahs show STARK differences in capabilities…. Yin and Yang… One an Olympic athlete and the other terribly handicapped. They both make do, but I would really like to see Eden have cubs.
Eden won’t be allowed to breed while staying with Faith and I think it’s a shame. Eden would be such a nurturing mother. She’s patient, gentle and would make a superb mother. But it’s her other traits that attract me; genetically healthy, no obvious deformities & her loving nature combined with her displayed hunting instincts makes her a candidate to me. She’s in fantastic condition & her pleasant attitude is something admired.
She gets along with all the other animals there; young cubs, dogs, older Cheetahs, and people. Her only flaw is stalking young children when they have tours there (behind the fence of course). It’s how she spends her days, besides resting & digesting.
To me, it’s a superb example of the predator in her… picking out the most vulnerable of our species (man) in a crowd and hunting them. I don’t know what she would do if she caught one, but it’s guaranteed not to be acceptable :) She went berserk one day when 50 kids under 8 yrs old stopped on tour. She couldn’t decide which one to hunt. They had to put a staff member inside her enclosure to try and keep her calm. I’m just happy she likes adult volunteers.
Keep watching for my Cheetah videos. I have my10 nights of video I filmed with Eden and Faith; sleeping inside their enclosure at night. I took some blankets, a pillow, and a couple of video cameras inside their concrete box inside their enclosure to sleep with them.
Ultimate trust is nurtured when you can sleep with an animal.
“Cuddling With The World— One Animal At A Time” Dolph C. Volker”
Whew! We warned you that was long. Now tell us what do you think? What would you do a a hungry Cheetah crashed your nap party? Comment your thoughts below and share this post with family and friends on social media!