Hardly a day goes by in South Africa with poachers not decimating our wildlife especially our rhino. Also in their sights are lions; the most depraved aspect of which is the so-called “canned hunting” where specially bred lions are shot at point blank range. In this case, the majority are foreigners, usually wealthy Americans. These “heroes” can be seen posing as they celebrate their killing of this majestic creature. Both types of hunting are as vile and depraved as the other. They represent base motives which should no longer be tolerated if we are to call ourselves civilised.
Before I cover today’s shocking news in this regard, let me tell you about the killing of black bears in Ely, Minnesota, USA. The Discovery Channel presented a program on the senseless killing of these bears which were part of a study into their behaviour.
Main picture: This is what poachers did to Hope the Rhino in order to obtain the maximum amount of horn which consists of benign keratin
The setting for this tragedy was a small rural hamlet where a sloth of black bears had made their home. Initially the residents of this community of no more than a dozen houses came to the realisation over numerous years that these bears would not harm them. Eventually one intrepid soul, Dr Lynn Rogers, risked life and limb and offered some food to one.
Lily the Black Bear
The bear ate the contents of the outstretched hand without harming its owner in any way. Gradually he came to view these bears in a different light from their brown and white haired cousins. Dr Rogers then arranged that a family of black bears, starting with Lily, the mother, would be fitted with signal emitting collars. Even the method of attaching these collars was indicative of the mutual trust that had been developed between them. Instead of the preferred method of attachment by firstly darting the animal, Dr Rogers merely attached the collar while he was feeding them.
Lily and her cubs
With the approach of the hunting season, a desperate plea was issued to hunters not to shoot bears wearing collars. To further make them visible, white and red ribbons were attached to these collars for the duration of the open season.
Lily terrifying a chipmunk
This request enraged the hunters so much that they abused the researchers on twitter. The underlying anger stemmed from the restrictions placed upon their “god-given” right to kill animals. Suffice to state that the mother bear which had been on the research program the longest was killed!
How despicable!
Cecil the ex-lion. Now Mr Palmer’s ill-gotten trophy. Cecil endured a 40 hour slow and painful death
Today’s anger is directed at an American dentist, Dr Walter James Palmer, a bow hunter from Montana in the USA. His victim was a research lion, Cecil, a resident of the Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe. Apparently this 13 year old lion sported a black mane and was a major tourist attraction in Zimbabwe.
What is even more shocking is that this lion had to endure a slow and painful death of 40 hours! When he was found, still alive days later, in agony, he had to be shot with a gun.
Cecil the Lion parading through his territory
Invariably the denouement of such an episode is a photograph of the hunter, enraptured with their trophy, a lifeless animal as if they had just achieved something historic. In most cases the head or the horns of the animal will then be shipped back to America as an example of their prowess in courageously killing a defenceless animal.
Killing of animals for pleasure cannot be deemed a sport. It harks back to mankind’s baser more primitive instincts. As such it does not deserve to be allowed space to operate in this civilised society.
If any good should come due to this tragic killing, it will be because this practice has been brought into sharp focus around the world.
With a smirk of satisfaction at a job well done, Mr Palmer displays the rhino that he has just killed in Namibia
Then there is the killing of the rhinos for their horns. Supposedly this tissue which is the same as keratin found in hair and nails is regarded as an aphrodisiac by people in East. With their burgeoning wealth, the demand for this product has exploded and, in concert with it, the rhino population has imploded.
Hope the Rhino with protection over its snout where the horn was gouged out
Finally I would like to share a post from Global March for Elephants and Rhinos regarding their efforts to save a rhino that was shot and barbarically dehorned. It is one of the insignificant victories against a veritable tide of bad news engulfing our rhino population.
Excellent News!
Thank you to Saving The Survivors team that has worked relentlessly to help #Hope, the miracle #Rhino survivor to heal and recover from her horrific poaching ordeal!
Please read their report below on the major procedure undertook yesterday to attach a new protective shield on Hope!
Hope on the mend
Please *S*H*A*R*E* her story so that the world can know the horror of her ordeal and what an incredibly brave girl, a *warrior* of note and an inspiration she is for her species!
(“I write this in tears as no animal has inspired me so much to fight harder to protect and save our #Rhino! Hope her story will do the same for you!” Admin GMFER)
“****Procedure 5 Update from Saving the Survivors***** Firstly thank you all for your wishes and positive thoughts. Apologies about not posting last night. We were all a little wiped out and got back to no electricity from load shedding. We were prepared for a very wet procedure as the Eastern Cape has had a lot of rain in the last week. Luckily yesterday the skies were clear and sunshine abounded. As always teams were briefed prior to commencement. So every team had their allocated tasks. By now the team’s work together like a well oiled machine.
Dr William Fowlds and his team darted Hope, stabilised her and established heart beat, blood pressure and administered anaesthetic and pain control. Bruce Main and the ground crew then moved in, to position her comfortably for the procedure to begin. It sounds simple but it takes 20 very strong men to do this.
Walter Palmer with one of his victims, Cecil the lion
Once she was positioned Dr Marais and Dr Steenkamp cleaned the wound and removed any necrotic tissue on the wound. Surprisingly the wound was quite healthy which we were happy about. Then came the challenging part. Dressing the wound and applying the shield. We had prefabricated a shield based on a mould of the wound from a previous procedure but it has changed quite significantly (which is a very good thing as the shield was too big which means the wound is getting smaller)
We did have a backup thankfully which which meant that we could cut one to size. So we had to measure and angle grind the shield to specific dimensions. This time we applied the shield in a different way which took a bit of time. We used thicker surgical steel and we attached it through the tissue but further into the shield to keep it in place. Who knew that drills, a Leatherman, wire cutters and screw drivers are essential surgical instruments? We are hoping this shield lasts longer as we would like to increase the intervals between procedures. Where there is life there is Hope xxx”
https://m.facebook.com/savingthesurvivors/posts/929175543790420
This is a fight which cannot be lost for the sakes of the animal kingdom and for the sake of future generations.