Three cheetahs swim moat to escape

Three cheetahs swim moat to escape Three cheetahs swam a moat and crawled through a hole in a rusty fence to escape their enclosure and then briefly roamed inside a wildlife park in New Zealand.

Orana Wildlife Park rushed visitors to a secure area while rangers rounded up the big cats Thursday, park chief executive Lynn Anderson said Friday.

"Our cheetahs, just like a domestic house cat, they all hate swimming, so if you had asked me yesterday would any of our cheetahs swim I would have said no," Anderson told National Radio. "They proved us quite wrong."

The cats, three youngsters who had been bred at the park, crawled through a fence hole that was exposed recently when greenery was cut back, she said. The breakout at the park near Christchurch lasted about a half hour.

Lucy Tame, a 25-year-old park visitor, said she and her mother took photographs as the three cats made their escape shortly after midday.

"We saw them sitting in their enclosure and they decided to go for a bit of a swim, one, two, three," she said. After climbing through the hole in the fence, the cats ran in front of a park shuttle bus, causing the driver to jam on his brakes, she said.

 

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- Posted on February 5, 2010
Submitted by Lizzard2000 on Thursday, 12/15/2011 - 20:33.

Thats funy but they could of got hurt .It would be funny if cheetahs romed freely their fast so I don't know how people finally captured them

Submitted by 314Aliana on Thursday, 11/17/2011 - 09:52.

How amazing! Those animals are really smart. I don't think my cats are that smart or determined. I don't even think my dog would do that. Are all animals smart like that?

Submitted by tself604 on Thursday, 11/03/2011 - 13:30.

This story makes me think, are all animals as smart as us. I wonder if they where planning to escape? They've got to be smart for doing that.

Submitted by Jeffery54 on Tuesday, 10/25/2011 - 16:58.

That must be scary to have 3 cheetahs loose in a zoo. That must be a bad fence. Just because house cats don`t like water doesn`t mean big cats don`t like water.

Submitted by danmanfrypan on Friday, 05/20/2011 - 11:42.

thats crazy and dangorous i would be like ahhh a cheetah i want my mom no not realy i wouldent say that not realy ahhhh

Submitted by coreyl99 on Friday, 05/13/2011 - 11:30.

Im really suprise that they didnt attack but at least there still alive well good for them there really cool cats lik jaguaers and polar bears those are cool to

Submitted by ivaney sawyer on Friday, 05/06/2011 - 13:11.

I already know that all cats don't like water. My cat kinda likes water. Sometimes, when I'm in the shower, my cat gets between two shower curtians, and pokes her head out the other side of it. Normally, her head gets soaked tring to drink the shower water.

Submitted by Sammy5050 on Wednesday, 03/16/2011 - 14:07.

I love cheetahs. They are awesome. They are smart animals to escape likr that. Well i cant beleive they escape but they are smart to think that. I mean they are fast runners.

Submitted by jeffery6 on Thursday, 03/10/2011 - 10:05.

Man i thought that cats dont like water.My cat hates the water.I know tiger like water but i thought that all the other big cats didnt like water.

Submitted by timothymicah6 on Thursday, 03/03/2011 - 15:58.

I think the cheetahs must have wanted the people to catch them because they're like the fastest animal in the world. I think if they really wanted to they could have gotten away.