Pregnant rhino poached – humans take action
Reserve management takes a proactive approach to poaching.
On 16 September the tranquillity of Plumari Game Reserve at the base of the Magaliesberg mountain was shattered when poachers slaughtered a pregnant female rhino.
On 23 October another dead female rhino was found at Askari Lodge in Magaliesburg with her horn poached. The autopsy showed that she also was pregnant.
In an effort to prevent further poaching, management at Askari took the decision to treat the remaining rhinos’ horns with indelible dye and a compound to deter poachers.
The NEWS went along to witness how experts sedated and treated the horns of Askari’s rhino in an effort to preserve not only Magalies’ but the world’s wildlife heritage.
The treatment entails a shorts procedure during which a team of experts infuse the horn of a sedated rhino with a dye that contaminates the horn and renders it useless for either ornamental or medicinal use. A full DNA sample is harvested and three identification microchips are placed into the horn and the animal’s body.
Rhino Rescue Project, developers of the treatment, believe that the treatment is one of the only proactive initiatives to combat the scourge of rhino poaching.
Conservationist on the other hand had various questions about possible side effects, dangers for calves, and the long-term effect of the treatment, however all these were answered by the experts to prove that this approach puts the rhino first.
It was quite an experience to witness how the rhinos recovered from sedation after the complex procedure. They woke up from a deep sleep, seemingly unaware that they had been handled by humans. They stood up and strolled back into the wild, the way nature intended – with their fashionable red horns intact.
According to experts the treatment is effective for the next four years, making Askari’s rhino worthless to poachers – worthless to a poacher, but priceless to those who aim to preserve the rhino for generations to come.
