Cheetah free in Delta cargo hold

Careful, this luggage could bite.

Zoo Atlanta officials said a cheetah that got loose in a Delta Air Lines cargo hold was resting comfortably Friday, a day after surprising a ground crew worker who went to unload bags at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.

The 1-year-old female cat, en route with another female cheetah from Wild Safari in Winston, Ore., to the Memphis Zoo, apparently got out of its crate during transport, said Delta spokesman Kent Landers.

Delta brought the 757 jet into an enclosed hangar and called Zoo Atlanta “to make sure all the precautions were in place to take care of the employees and the cheetahs,” Landers said.

Dr. Sam Rivera, a Zoo Atlanta veterinarian, shot the 90-pound kitty in the shoulder with a tranquilizer gun. The animals were transported to Zoo Atlanta and are in quarantine. “They are doing well,” Rivera said. “They are very relaxed and are eating.”

Memphis Zoo officials are expected to pick up the pair early next week, Rivera said.

Landers said no passengers were in danger, and no baggage or cargo on the plane was damaged by the cheetahs.