Hoedspruit Wildlife Corner: Rhino de-horning

The HOEDSPRUIT HERALD caught up with Dr Pete Rogers and his team to discuss any interesting veterinary cases that they have attended to in recent weeks.

Dr Rogers skimmed back over his diary and reported back that most of their call outs have been for the more routine appointments.

A procedure that has sadly become part of the ProVet team’s routine is the de-horning of rhino.

It is upsetting that this rather intrusive and extreme measure has become a necessity for the protection of our rhinos.

Most people will agree that rhino de-horning is definitely not first prize but in the war against poaching that is currently being fought, it is one tool in a conservation manager’s arsenal.

Dr Rogers told the HERALD:

“It is the only pro-active measure that we are currently taking to protect our rhinos. This along with good security. Everything else is reactive.”

Just after the HERALD’s meeting with Dr Rogers, he was taken on via social media about the act of de-horning, with some keyboard conservationists stating that, “de-horned rhinos have less chances of survival in a confrontation and de-horning rhinos does not save them from poachers.” With poise and professionalism, his response was concise and factual. Many followers of the ProVet Facebook page commended Dr Rogers on how he handled the response.

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Rhinos are being de-horned in order to deter poachers from killing them for their horns. “It is about risk versus reward, the idea is to deflect the poachers,” says Dr Rogers.

Despite the procedure being a fairly new part of the team’s daily work, perhaps only in the last five years or so, they have perfected the technique of de-horning.

The horn is cut about eight centimetres above the facial area as cutting lower would result in cutting into the sinus region. Next, a tungsten grinder is used to smooth over the edges, removing as much of the horn as possible.

Dr Rogers has seen remarkable success in using de-horning as a deterrent against poaching on many local reserves.

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One reserve in particular suffered a spate of incursions and lost a number of rhino at the hands of poachers. Since de-horning, they have not lost a single rhino.

In terms of survival and change to behaviour, research so far has shown few negative effects on the animal’s natural behaviour after de-horning. Certainly, there seems to be no change in the mating ritual, with many reserves witnessing the same inter-calving period as before their animals were de-horned.

Rhino horn is a renewable resource meaning that it does grow back. The de-horning process is therefore repeated every 18 to 24 months in order to safeguard the animals.

Good work Dr Rogers and the ProVet team.