Cheetah cub and puppy are BFFs!

My friend Michelle Curley runs online media for the Cincinnati Zoo. This is what she saw when she arrived at work today. "Best morning of my Zoo career!" she said. Photo from Michelle's @CincinnatiZoo Twitter feed. More photos at her Google+ page!

• [Stephen Schenck]

  My money’s on BFFNs.

• [CCinBmore]

  This does not end well…

  • [Bionicrat]

     Actually cheetahs and domestic dogs DO get a long well in captivity – in fact the dog helps keep the cat calm.  San Diego has 4 pairs of cheetahs and dogs and has been doing it for awhile.  A similar thing is done with wolves in captivity.  http://www.cesarsway.com/dogbehavior/basics/Dogs-and-Cheetahs-Living-Together-at-The-San-Diego-Zoo

• [Stefan Jones]

  They’re both having fun, but the dog definitely has the advantage here.

  That will change once the kitten’s brain is put  in a shiny chrome cheetah-bot.

  • [marilove]

    http://www.cesarsway.com/dogbehavior/basics/Dogs-and-Cheetahs-Living-Together-at-The-San-Diego-Zoo
    Nope :)

• [NoOneSpecific]

  Jump forward to a 2 year old puppy and a 2 year old cheetah and then we have puppy for dinner.

  =)

  • [Boundegar]

    I was thinking the same thing.  Can we get a promise the followup video will be on BoingBoing?  With a caption like “No Longer BFFs”?

    • [awjt]

      It’ll go something like this.
      Cheetah: “RAWWWWWr.  WReeeearrrrrh!  REEEEAWWWRGH!!!!!”
      Dog: “Shut the fuck up, bitch!”
      Cheetah: “REarrrrrrrrgh!!!!!”
      Dog: “I’m outta here. Bye.”

• [pocoTOTO]

  I give it two weeks tops before the cheetah gains the physical edge.

  • [welcomeabored]

    As long as Savannah can’t be trumped in the future with a nose smooch.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pq9hBEvFNlM&feature=related

• [dethbird]

  That cheetah is your beeeeeest fwend …. UNTIL HE KILLS YOU

• [otterhead]

  The Cincinnati Zoo pairs up dogs & cheetahs at an early age, because they’ve found that besides being BFFs 4 life,  cheetahs are hard to train but very good mimics. So instead of training a cheetah, they train a dog, and the cheetah picks the training up from the dog. I’ve seen the ‘dog and cheetah’ shows they do there, and it’s fascinating to watch.

  • [Incipient Madness]

    That must have been how the ancient Egyptians domesticated cheetahs.

    I thought I overheard them say that dog wouldn’t get much bigger. I agree that the advantage will go to the cheetah in two weeks.

    • [retepslluerb]

      Cheetahs haven’t been domesticated, though. They are just easier to tame and train than other big cats.

• [jtboofle]

  Dogs & cheetahs are paired at zoos all over… 
  Houston: http://www.houstonzoo.org/cheetahs/
  San Diego: http://blogs.sandiegozoo.org/2009/10/09/cheetah-and-dog-pals/
  Busch Gardens Tampa: http://www.neatorama.com/2012/04/29/cheetah-and-dog-are-roommates/

• [IamInnocent]

  That cheetah sounds like a squeaky toy: there, explained.

• [wibbled_pig]

  Pretty much any cat pound for pound is more dangerous than its canine equivalent.. mostly because of claws.

  • [Alison Reid]

    Maybe a bit, but cheetahs, unlike other cats, do not have retractable claws. They are more like dog claws and meant for traction rather than capturing prey or climbing.

• [Calvin]

  Any chance of a quarterly update on this friendship?