Puppy becomes best friends with cheetah cub that was abandoned by its mother

Have you seen anything cuter than this?

• Ruuxa the cheetah was adopted by San Diego Safari Park
• To keep the orphaned cheetah company, they brought in a friendly pup
• The two animals scamper around their enclosure like the best of friends 

By Harriet Hernando for MailOnline

Published: 21 August 2014 

An orphaned cheetah cub has discovered that a dog is more than a man's best friend at San Diego Zoo Safari Park. When Ruuxa the cheetah was abandoned by his mother, he was taken in by the zoo who found him a new friend to keep him company - Raina the Rhodesian Ridgeback puppy. The two animals, who are both nearly four months old, scamper around their enclosure like the best of friends in this footage which was released by the zoo.

Meet Raina the Rhodesian Ridgeback and Ruuxa the cheetah

Ridgebacks are no stranger to big cats and are also known as African Lion Hounds because they were originally bred as farm and hunting dogs in Rhodesia - now Zimbabwe. Once they picked up the scent of a lion, they would track it down and try and confine it so a hunter with a gun could get a clean shot. But luckily for Ruuxa the cheetah, Raina has been introduced to help him navigate his new home in the zoo.

Besties: Ruuxa the cheetah and Raina the Ridgeback go for a walk together in San Diego Zoo Safari Park

When cheetahs are born they are blind and completely rely on their mothers to protect them from predators.  If the mother cannot produce enough milk, she will often abandon her cubs in the wild leaving them to the mercy of the outside world.

So far Raina the Ridgeback has been showing the young cub some fun and games inside their enclosure and it looks like there is never a dull moment at San Diego Zoo Safari Park.  

source