The Traveling Vet Girl

Rhinos are still unfortunately being poached in South Africa. Their horns are sold on black markets because some people believe they have medicinal properties, when in fact the horn is simply keratin – the same substance that’s in our fingernails.  Poachers brutally shoot and kill them, cut the horn off, and leave the dead animal behind.  They’re magnificent creatures, and it’s horrible they’re being murdered…for keratin that has no use.  The population of rhinos is dwindling, and they will soon be extinct if poaching continues.

Luckily, there are efforts being made to protect rhinos.  Selling rhino horns is illegal internationally (see the controversy in South Africa) but that does little to stop poachers.  Kruger National Park no longer posts rhino sightings on their information boards, as they do with other animals to aid visitors. Game reserves spend loads of money on security to protect their rhinos. But still, the poachers persist.

Dehorning rhinos is one method to deter poachers, and while I was in South Africa in 2013 I had the opportunity to assist a dehorning team.  Basically, the premise is to safely trim a rhino’s horn so that poachers have less incentive to go after that particular rhino.  Less horn = less money.

Visit this website to learn more!

I’m incredibly proud that I was able to participate first hand in helping these amazing animals.  In honor of Wold Rhino Day this past week, here is a recap of my day trimming rhino horns!

First, the helicopter crew located the rhinos, and they were darted from the air in order to immobilize them. Wild rhinos don’t take kindly to being touched!

The rest of the team followed in trucks on the ground, and we drove like crazy (literally) to find them in the bush once they were darted.

Once found, we carefully approached the rhino and placed a blindfold over him to keep him calm while sedated.

The rhinos were anesthetized and felt no pain when their horns were trimmed.  We monitored their vitals to make sure they were stable, and inserted an IV catheter for easy access to a vein for anesthesia reversal or any emergency.  We also took blood samples for research.

With a fresh “manicure”, the horns are now in much better hands than with poachers!

Rhinos are beautiful animals.  It was an amazing experience being so close to so many of them during my time in South Africa.  It would be a tragedy for these animals to go extinct, for something as silly as keratin in their horns.  I hope in the future I can continue working towards their conservation!