Cheetahs are notoriously difficult to breed in captivity and show high stress-related health problems in zoo settings. Understanding and addressing their specific welfare needs is crucial for species survival.
Cheetah welfare in captivity is intimately connected to reproductive success, as chronic stress directly suppresses reproduction through hormonal mechanisms. The challenge of providing adequate welfare for cheetahs in zoo settings is substantial: these are long-ranging, speed-dependent predators that are highly sensitive to confinement stress. Welfare improvements have been achieved through providing large naturalistic enclosures, companion animals, visual complexity, varied enrichment, and careful social management. Faecal glucocorticoid monitoring provides objective evidence of stress levels over time and allows welfare interventions to be evaluated for effectiveness. As the wild population continues to decline due to habitat loss and human-wildlife conflict, improving captive welfare and breeding success becomes increasingly important for conservation.