CINCINNATI (Gray News) – Three dogs who spent their lives as companions to cheetahs at the Cincinnati Zoo have retired from their positions, the zoo announced.
The Cincinnati Zoo said Moose, Remus and Daisy are retiring after years of work with the cheetahs.
When the dogs were pups, they were each paired with a cheetah around the same age and raised together as surrogate siblings.
Each of the dogs is expected to be adopted this year to live their retired lives as a pet at a zoo staff member’s home.
According to the staff, the dogs are only needed until the cheetahs reach their maturity at around 2 years of age.
The zoo said cheetahs are solitary animals and prefer to be on their own when they are adults, so they eventually grow distant from their canine counterparts as they get older.
Some of the dogs have continued to play with their cheetahs past that point in their lives, but the play lessens as the cheetahs age.
After years of hard work and play, the dogs have earned a relaxing life of retirement, the zoo said.
The zoo said cheetahs usually separate from their siblings and mother once they mature to live on their own as adults. Female cheetahs in particular do not like interacting with other cheetahs.
As part of the cat ambassador program, the cheetahs act the same as their African counterparts and are happy to be solitary.
At the zoo, the cheetahs only interact with their trainers.
Dogs tend to be playful their whole lives, whereas cheetahs do not. When they are paired up, the cheetahs and dogs tend to not spend as much time together as they get older. Eventually, the dogs prefer to be with people, which is why they are adopted and allowed to spend the rest of their lives with loving owners as any other family dogs would be.
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