The Cheetahs of De Wildt by Ann van Dyk

The Cheetahs of De Wildt (Second Edition of the De Wildt Cheetah Story)

Ann van Dyk's Own Account of Her Struggle to Save the Cheetah from Extinction at De Wildt

Bibliographic Specifications

• Title: The Cheetahs of De Wildt
• Author: Ann van Dyk
• Publisher: The De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Trust, Hartbeespoort
• Publication Date: 2007
• ISBN-13: 9780620384834
• Edition Details: Second Edition, 2007 softcover release.
• Binding: Publisher's illustrated perfect-bound paperback with printed card wrappers, no flaps.
• Physical Format: Large softcover (trade paperback), approximately 235 x 155 mm. Illustrated with colour photographs, including photographic plates.
• Language: English

Official Condition Report

• The Book: Very Good (VG)
• Exterior / Wraps: The green printed wrappers are tidy, with light wear only. The spine is clean, with cream lettering and no obvious fading or creasing. There is slight scuffing and a small crease at the lower front corner and along the front edge, and some faint scratches and marks to the back cover. The page edges are lightly toned.
• Interior: The text pages are clean and legible, with no markings. The page edges are slightly toned. The binding is tight.
• The Dust Jacket: Not Applicable (As Issued)

Synopsis & Historical Value

The Cheetahs of De Wildt is Ann van Dyk's account of her work at the De Wildt breeding centre near Hartbeespoort and of her long struggle to save the cheetah from extinction. This second edition was published in 2007 by The De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Trust.

Van Dyk founded the centre in 1971 on her family farm after she and her brother rescued two cheetah cubs. The book follows the breeding programme that grew from that beginning, including the requirements of breeding cheetahs in captivity and the story of the king cheetah. The programme also took in other animals, among them caracals and brown hyaenas.

The centre became internationally recognised for helping bring the cheetah back from the brink, and is credited with breeding more than a thousand animals since the early 1970s. Written by the woman who built it, this is a first-hand record of a landmark South African conservation effort and a worthwhile addition to any Africana natural history shelf.

Author Profile: Ann van Dyk

Ann van Dyk founded the De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Centre in 1971 on her family farm in De Wildt, after she and her brother rescued two cheetah cubs. Over the following decades the centre became internationally known for its cheetah breeding work, and she is recorded as the first breeder of the king cheetah.

Her honours include a gold medal from the South African Nature Foundation in 1988 and the Cheetah Conservation Fund's Cheetah Conservationist of the Year award in 2004. The centre was renamed the Ann van Dyk Cheetah Centre in 2010. She died at the age of 90, as reported in 2021.

Ann van Dyk cheetah book · The Cheetahs of De Wildt second edition · De Wildt Cheetah Centre history · king cheetah breeding South Africa · South African cheetah conservation book · Africana wildlife conservation