South African cheetah to have prosthetic leg fitted

A two-year-old cheetah, who had her paw mangled in a crude snare, is to have a prosthetic leg fitted in a ground-breaking operation by animal surgeons in South Africa.

Betty-Blue was operated on at the De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Centre, near Johannesburg, after being rescued from the iron jaws of the trap which had clamped down on her left hind leg in the province of Mpumalanga.

"She was brought in to a vet, who thought it was so serious she should be euthanised. But we are not big on euthanasia and decided we should give it a try," said project deputy director Vanessa Bouwer.