Riana Van Nieuwenhuizen
Founder and Director
Riana is the founder of Cheetah Experience. She is one of the leading “Cheetah Ladies” in South Africa and her passion is to educate people about these endangered animals.
Riana is committed to ensure that the South African cheetah populations chances of survival are strongly improved through strengthening blood lines and is pushing for DNA testing and the establishment of a stud book in the country to make breeding ethical.
Cheetah Experience was founded with the intention of assisting in the prevention of the further decline of cheetah populations. For this reason it’s mission is to ethically breed cheetahs, in unison with other cheetah conservation projects, in an attempt to ensure viable genetic diversity.
The future aspiration is to purchase an area of land in order to release cheetahs back into a ‘protected wild’, where they will be interfered with as little as possible by humans, yet will still be monitored closely by vets and researchers. This will allow us to gain a better insight into the lives of these magnificent creatures.​
Ute Vierling
Resident
Ute is originally from Germany, but now a permanent resident of South Africa. She always dreamed of working with animals, driven by her deep love and passion for them—especially cats, both big and small. Now, at CE, she has the opportunity to give them the best life possible and we appreciate all her efforts.
Savannah
Head Curator
Savannah brings with her over a decades’ worth of experience in conservation and a heart full of love. She is a passionate spirit that is dedicating her life to this project and the very special, soulful animals that call it home.
Gerbie Mir
Chief Operating Officer
Gerbie oversees the projects daily operations, ensuring that the business runs efficiently and effectively while in line with strategic objectives.
With a strong background in Conservation and Hospitality Education Management, she brings 20 years of leadership experience to the role. Her understanding and passion for animals and people will ensure that our residents are well looked after.
Asma Mahomed
Cheetah Side Co-ordinator
Asma a.k.a Wolfie is originally from Durban, Phoenix. She have always felt strongly that animals deserve proper care and happiness. Their wellbeing is of utmost importance to her, and she is highly dedicated to their welfare.
Rachel Bloem
Lion Side Co-ordinator
Rachel Bloem is very passionate about wildlife since childhood and completed her studies in Captive Animal Management to live out her dream of working with animals. Her soft approach makes her very popular amongst the animals and her experience in working with a variety of species is valuable to the project.
Jabobus Bloem
Volunteer Co-ordinator
Jacobus Bloem loves working with people and nature. His background in hospitality and cooking, makes him the perfect host as he loves working with the volunteers and guests of the project.
Kerry O'Mahoney
Animal Care Giver
Kerry is one of our youngest and most passionate team members. Her exceptional skill and experience with big cats quickly shone through, as she wasted no time in getting to know the animals intimately. Her positive attitude is a rare gem, and she possesses a unique talent for teaching people and training our animals.
Jason Erasmus
Animal Care Giver
Jason has worked with animals for many years and have always wanted to gain more experience in working with different species. He is passionate about nature and working at Cheetah Experience has given him the opportunity to learn more about the amazing beings.
Charel Bloem
Meat Room Manager
Charel Bloem is a 28 year old with his heart in the bush. He has a Diploma in Nature Management with various other certificates in the department. He says he loves working with animals more than with humans and his passion is Nature, not just animals.
