Related Resources
Learn more about our cheetah conservation program.
See who helped support the cheetah conservation campaign.
On the Path to Saving Cheetahs: Update
FONZ has reached a major milestone in our Cheetah Conservation Program Campaign—donations from members and the public have surpassed $100,000! Combined with a grant from the Ferris Family Foundation that will match the first $50,000 raised, we are now half way to meeting our campaign goal of $300,000.
Thanks to FONZ supporters like you, National Zoo scientists can provide a brighter future for cheetahs in the U.S. and in Africa by increasing their populations, enhancing their health, and creating the next generation of conservation leaders that will protect cheetahs in the wild.
Cheetahs are in a tight spot. Not so long ago, their range stretched from Africa through Central Asia and beyond. Today, fewer than 15,000 remain in isolated populations in Africa and Iran. And cheetahs in zoos face challenges, too. National Zoo scientists have discovered much to help cheetahs, but we need to do more to protect the future of these spotted cats. 
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In October 2007, the Smithsonian’s National Zoo opened a new Cheetah Science Facility. This facility offers scientists unprecedented opportunities to study cheetahs. You can play a critical role in the success of our cheetah conservation program by helping us provide a brighter future for cheetahs by:
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Learn more about our cheetah conservation program.
The nine-acre Cheetah Science Facility provides enclosures for up to a dozen cheetahs and their cubs. This increased capacity will offer many more options for pairing individual cheetahs for breeding, increasing the odds of breeding success and ultimately contributing to the population’s genetic diversity.
Also at the facility, our scientists will continue to study the medical, nutritional, and behavioral requirements of this species.
The National Zoo has also created a Mobile Laboratory Research Team that shares its expertise and scientific equipment with zoos all over North America. This service unit provides training and support to overcome cheetah fertility and health problems. To date, the team has helped produce ten cheetah litters in North American zoos using artificial insemination.
More recently, the Zoo has focused its work with cheetah conservation organizations in the Southern African Development Community (SADC). In the western part of the SADC community exists the largest free-ranging cheetah population in Africa (primarily in Namibia and Botswana). In these countries, people largely see cheetahs as threats to farmers’ livestock. To change this perception, the National Zoo is working with local conservationists, land owners, educators and governmental offices to educate people about the value of predators and conservation, while at the same time helping create the next generation of cheetah conservationists.
