While cheetahs might look like majestic and dangerous beasts, actually, they are very nervous beings. They get so anxious, they don’t know how to socialize with each other and get too stressed to have sex. That’s why they needed help as they’re becoming extinct – and the solution came in the most unexpected form…

虽然猎豹可能看上去像威严又危险的野兽，但实际上它们是非常胆怯的生物。它们非常焦虑不知道如何相互交往，而且会因为太紧张而无法交配。因为它们濒临灭绝，所以它们需要帮助，而解决的方法却是以一种最难以预料的方式……

Seeing that cheetahs need some assistance, for years now zoo keepers have been assigning these animals their very own… emotional support dogs. “It’s a love story of one species helping another species survive,” said Jack Grisham, vice president at the St. Louis Zoo and species survival plan coordinator for cheetahs in North America.

鉴于猎豹需要些帮助，多年以来动物园管理员一直在为这些动物指派他们特有的……情感支持犬。“这是一个物种帮助另一个物种生存下去的友爱故事，”圣路易斯动物园副总兼北美猎豹生存计划统筹者杰克·格里沙姆说道。

“A dominant dog is very helpful because cheetahs are quite shy instinctively, and you can’t breed that out of them,” explains Janet Rose-Hinostroza, animal training supervisor at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. “When you pair them [cheetahs with dogs], the cheetah looks to the dog for cues and learns to model their behavior. It’s about getting them to read that calm, happy-go-lucky vibe from the dog” – and that helps them be more confident and willing to get it on.

“一只有影响力的狗狗是非常有帮助的，因为猎豹天生就很害羞，而且在人工繁殖的过程中，你也无法把它们的这种特性消除，”圣地亚哥野生动物园动物培训主管珍妮特·罗斯-伊诺斯特罗萨解释道。“当你把猎豹和狗狗配在一起的时候，猎豹会通过观察它们而得到提示，并学着模仿它们的行为。这是要让猎豹从狗狗那里感受到那种平静且无忧无虑的气氛”，并且这会使他们更自信，并愿意交配。

Cheetahs are very socially awkward and shy animals – and that’s why they need dogs.

猎豹是非常不善于社交而且很害羞的动物，所以它们需要狗狗（的帮助）。

They get so anxious and stressed, they don’t breed and are becoming extinct.

它们太焦虑不安，无法繁殖后代，而且濒临灭绝。

When they have a dog around, cheetahs relax and learn confident behaviors they can mimic.

当有狗狗围着它们的时候，猎豹就放松下来，并学习它们可以模仿的自信行为。

“It’s a love story of one species helping another species survive.”

“这是一个物种帮助另一个物种生存下去的友爱故事。”

That’s right, cheetahs, relax and enjoy yourselves like doggies would – then procreate!

这就对了，猎豹，放松，像狗狗一样尽情享受，然后繁殖后代去吧！

（翻译：Dlacus）