Leopard Cub Bites Woman!

I've been trying for ages to get this picture.... this is a photo of a picture on my iPhone (which I know, sounds stupid, bear with me). I finally got a teenager to show me how to save the photo to my phone...

In July/August I went to South Sudan on a work trip and flying up to Rumbek (see my very poor quality helicopter snap ) a colleague asked me to carry some coffee for a friend of hers up there. The friend turned out to not only run a 'safari lodge' but also to be a wildlife expert and told me that she had two leopard cubs she'd rescued from some supposed wildlife wardens who claimed the mother has deserted her cubs (hmm, doesn't seem very likely). Anyway, they were almost dead with dehydration and diahorrea, so she took them off, used her wildlife services contacts and the internet to find out how to make formula for them and nursed them back to health. Yes, you really can find a recipe for leopard cub formula on the internet.

"Do you want to see the cubs?" she asked. Yes! Of course I do, who wouldn't...? I did expect them to be in some sort of enclosure, though, as I sat down on her doorstep. Next thing I knew a big ball of fur flew over my shoulder into my lap and began playing, very much like a kitten, but with sharper claws - a lot sharper claws - and some very strong teeth. Did I mention the sharp claws? The second cub then appeared and both took any slight movement I made as an indication that I wanted to play, be chewed on and swiped at by the most gorgeous soft furry paws (with the sharp claws!). I got a few scratches and one bite - which didn't even leave a scar sadly - think how I could have dined out on that - before I disentangled myself and retreated to a safe distance.

As far as I know the cubs were sent to Kenya where they were going to be looked after by the wildlife services there. And only when I did my post-trip visit to our health team and they mentioned rabies did I wonder if I had perhaps been a little incautious... (no frothing at the mouth yet and I've been back several months so I think we can discount that). Please forgive me the poor quality of the picture, and the 'cheating' by taking a picture of a picture... but I really wanted this story in my diary for the grandchildren.

It was an amazing experience, the best thing that has ever happened to me on a work trip is getting bitten by a leopard!