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Vet's approach rescues baby rhinos - 9th September 2022

South Africa is home to nearly 80 percent of the global population of rhinos. However, this means it's a centre for the illegal wildlife trade. In 2021, 450 rhinos were poached there, according to government figures.

Poaching is driven by the demand for rhino horn, as it features in traditional Asian medicines. Believed to possess beneficial qualities, a single horn can fetch tens of thousands of dollars.

Only the adult beasts are poached, leaving their young calves - weighing only 20 kilograms at birth – at great risk and requiring 24/7 care.

At the Rhino Orphanage, this care's supervised by vet Doctor Pierre Bester, commonly referred to as "the rhino whisperer".

Dr Pierre Bester: "Firstly, mostly, their mothers have been poached. So they, from two weeks, three weeks, a month, six months – but all come here and you handle them differently. And you get them and you put them in crèches, put them in, in – give them a friend and then they cope."

Dr Bester experiments with a variety of measures, including putting the young rhinos with an animal companion, such as a sheep. The babies are often emotionally damaged after being orphaned and frequently their human carers choose to sleep in the same enclosure, to help them cope.

The orphanage's manager believes such original ideas are the reason for the centre's success in helping the rhino babies adjust.

Yolande van der Merwe: "Working with Dr. Pierre is – it's amazing! We are so incredibly privileged to have a vet that's not a textbook vet, that thinks outside the box, that is willing to do things alternatively. He's very clever! He always finds a solution. He always makes a plan."

Protection is the main priority and recently, the Rhino Orphanage has relocated to an unknown site. The plan is to release the rhinos back into the wild, once Bester and his team have developed strategies to guarantee their survival.