Sandra Wright

silvergryphon:

kedreeva:
justcatposts:
A caretaker comforting his cheetah companions when they get nervous during the night
(Source)
So the actual source on this is the youtube channel of Dolph C. Volker, a nature photographer that is also a long-time volunteer at the Cheetah Experience Breeding Centre in Bloemfontein, South Africa. He was experimenting in this video to find out how cheetahs preferred to sleep/what they prefer to sleep on (the answer was: a warm body).
I want to add that this care center seems to do a lot toward conserving land and protecting the cheetah species, but they also work with other species including plenty of big cats, meercats, wolves, bat-eared foxes, and a couple of ungulates. They have what looks like a great enrichment program, eager volunteers, and good veterinary care for everyone.
They also make most of their money interacting with the public for visitation and education, and due to COVID19, they have had to close their doors to visitors at all. This means that they’re facing some tough times financially. They have an amazon wishlist if you prefer to purchase something directly, but they also have adoption packages (to sponsor an animal) and a general donations area that can be for any amount.
And when @kedreeva says Dolph is a ‘long-time volunteer-, they mean it- he’s been doing this for years, building up relationships with the cats he works with . They know him, they remember him, and he’s worked with several of the cats since they were cubs.
So please no one take this as a reason to clamor for close contact with big cats. Dude’s a pro working with animals very familiar with him and he’s doing this For Science.