In a groundbreaking move‚ medical science has been adapted to help in the fight to save a young Eastern Cape rhino’s life.
Six-year-old Hope yesterday underwent an hour-long procedure to have a gaping wound‚ left after poachers hacked away almost all of her face‚ repaired.
Hope survived a poaching attack in May last year when she was found critically wounded on the Kariega Game Reserve near Bushman’s River.
Relocated to an animal rehabilitation centre in Limpopo‚ it has been touch and go for Hope for the past year‚ and she has undergone numerous surgical attempts to repair her wounds.
Now‚ using a medical procedure normally reserved for patients who have undergone abdominal surgery‚ her carers are hoping that Hope will heal to the point that she can be released back in the wild.
Saving the Survivors founder Johan Marais‚ a vet from Onderstepoort Veterinary Centre who operated on her on Tuesday‚ said it would now be a matter of time.
The device‚ which is manufactured in Canada‚ and which uses a crank and pulley system‚ relies on tension to draw the sides of the gaping wound together‚ stimulating cell regeneration and stretching the skin over the wound.
Marais said it was the first time ever that such a medical procedure had been used on any animal‚ “let alone a rhino”.
Hope has become the international ambassador in the fight against rhino poaching‚ with the “poster child”‚ according to Save the Survivors member Suzanne Boswell-Rudham‚ gaining a huge international following.
Boswell-Rudham said it was Hope’s feisty fighting attitude and her vast “emotional” eating habits‚ which had kept her alive up until now.
Marais said the pulley systems‚ which were attached to large shoestring-like elastic cords‚ would create tension, drawing her face back together.
He said once drawn together enough‚ a collagen-like substance would be placed inside the wound which her body’s cells would attach to.
Asked what the chances of success were likely to be‚ Marais‚ said: “At this stage all we have is hope.
“But‚ given what a fighter she is‚ we have all the hope in the world.” — Tiso Black Star Group Digital/The Times
High-tech, ‘human’ surgery for mutilated rhino Hope
Six-year-old Hope yesterday underwent an hour-long procedure to have a gaping wound‚ left after poachers hacked away almost all of her face‚ repaired.
Hope survived a poaching attack in May last year when she was found critically wounded on the Kariega Game Reserve near Bushman’s River.
Relocated to an animal rehabilitation centre in Limpopo‚ it has been touch and go for Hope for the past year‚ and she has undergone numerous surgical attempts to repair her wounds.
Now‚ using a medical procedure normally reserved for patients who have undergone abdominal surgery‚ her carers are hoping that Hope will heal to the point that she can be released back in the wild.
Saving the Survivors founder Johan Marais‚ a vet from Onderstepoort Veterinary Centre who operated on her on Tuesday‚ said it would now be a matter of time.
The device‚ which is manufactured in Canada‚ and which uses a crank and pulley system‚ relies on tension to draw the sides of the gaping wound together‚ stimulating cell regeneration and stretching the skin over the wound.
Marais said it was the first time ever that such a medical procedure had been used on any animal‚ “let alone a rhino”.
Hope has become the international ambassador in the fight against rhino poaching‚ with the “poster child”‚ according to Save the Survivors member Suzanne Boswell-Rudham‚ gaining a huge international following.
Boswell-Rudham said it was Hope’s feisty fighting attitude and her vast “emotional” eating habits‚ which had kept her alive up until now.
Marais said the pulley systems‚ which were attached to large shoestring-like elastic cords‚ would create tension, drawing her face back together.
He said once drawn together enough‚ a collagen-like substance would be placed inside the wound which her body’s cells would attach to.
Asked what the chances of success were likely to be‚ Marais‚ said: “At this stage all we have is hope.
“But‚ given what a fighter she is‚ we have all the hope in the world.” — Tiso Black Star Group Digital/The Times
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