![]() ![]() Twenty years ago, John Varty, co-owner of Londolozi Game Reserve on the border of the Kruger National Park, took in a pair of six-week-old leopard cubs that had been born in a private zoo in Zimbabwe. Right: Sky News presenter, Stephen Dixon.Ī ranger’s efforts to raise a pair of orphaned leopard cubs makes a heart-breaking tale. Set in the bushveld of South Africa and the pristine wilderness of Zambia’s South Luangwa Valley, My Life with Leopards is a story of love, triumph and, ultimately, heartbreak. When, a year later, Graham and the leopards moved to the remote South Luangwa Valley, a heavy-hearted Graham knew it was the beginning of the end and that soon it would be time to let them go. ![]() Her complex character and strong reservations appeared to persist, despite Graham’s efforts to win her trust.Įventually Poepface relented and so began a love story a powerful bond between a man and a young female leopard. ![]() His sister Poepface however was not that easily swayed. ![]() Boycat, the slightly bigger male cub proved to be an easy-going character and, after his initial reservations, he soon settled in. Establishing himself and his charges in a small tented camp in the middle of the South African bush, Graham set about his task of habituating the cubs to the dangers of the wild in preparation for their eventual release into the bush.īut first he had to gain the young leopards’ trust. In 1993 game ranger Graham Cooke was given the opportunity to parent two six-week-old leopard cubs. ![]()
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