Cheetah Attacks Boy, And His Family Has Inspiring Response

It's amazing how compassionate people can be, even in times of their own distress. And the parents of a boy attacked by a cheetah last week are a prime example.

Their 10-year-old son, Aiden Fry, was on a school trip to the Nambiti Game Reserve in South Africa when a cheetah held in an enclosure rushed at a fence and bit the boy's back. Aiden struggled to fight the cat off, and finally got free, but with some deep wounds.

As the boy went in for surgery and subsequent recovery, Craig and Donnette Fry found it in their hearts to not only forgive the animal for the incident, but to be concerned about the cat's welfare.

The Frys say that the cheetah obviously needs to be back in the wild. "We want the cheetah to be protected and placed in an environment where he needs to be," Donnette Fry told the BBC.

But it's complicated. The cheetah is being held in the Kwa Cheetah conservation center, a breeding facility at the reserve, which may ultimately prove good for the species. But the boy's parents are concerned about the individual cheetah's welfare. According to the BBC, the cheetah sprinted 50 miles per hour at the boundary of his enclosure and thrust his head and paws through the warped fence.

While The Telegraph reports that it's believed this is the third such incident at the facility in just two months, the Kwa Cheetah conservation center wrote on its Facebook page, "The recent incidents at Kwa Cheetah have unfortunately been sensationalized. Kwa Cheetah are investigating them fully. We have a proven track record and these are the first incidents of this nature in the 5 years of our existence. Thank you to everyone for your support."

In 1900, there were over 100,000 wild cheetahs in Africa; today, there are only about 9,000. Cheetahs are endangered largely because of dwindling habitats as human populations take over lands they once called home.

While the cheetah's fate remains undetermined, Aiden is recovering well from the deep wounds the frustrated cheetah made on his back. "On behalf of Aiden and our family in SA and abroad, we would like to thank everyone, collectively, for their messages, thoughts, prayers and kindness during this time," Donnette Fry wrote on her Facebook page. "Aiden is in good spirits and we are truly blessed to have such a little fighter in our family. Thank you to each and every one."

The Nambiti Game Reserve and Kwa Cheetah did not immediately reply to The Dodo's request for comment.