Help Raise Orphaned Baby Rhinos

Since 2022, this project has been in effect – and a total of 6 orphaned baby rhinos have been receiving funds for their care, thanks to you, our amazing supporters. It all started with Thaba’s arrival in 2022, through to Eve’s arrival on Christmas Eve in December 2024.

The time has now come to shift over some of the rhinos funded by this project to our other project, Big Rhinos Need Big Hearts Too. While they are still officially not quite adult rhinos yet, they are no longer babies.

Thaba, Bula, Mango and Peter will now join Esmé to receive funding from Big Rhinos Need Big Hearts Too, while Angie and Eve will remain on this project.

What does this mean for the rhinos?

Nothing will change in their day to day lives – we are just moving the older rhinos together under the same project to make it easier to monitor fundraising efforts.

What does this mean for you as a donor?

Your donation to this project will still go towards funding Angie and Eve’s requirements – but no longer for Thaba, Bula, Mango and Peter.

If you are also donating to our other project for Esmé under Big Rhinos Need Big Hearts Too, your donation will now go towards funding for Esmé, Thaba, Bula, Mango and Peter.

Once again, we would like to express our sincere gratitude for the funding received on this project. Without your contributions, we would not be able to give rhino orphans at HESC the care and rehabilitation they need.

We are pleased to report that both Angie and Eve are now fully weaned and ready to begin the next phase of their development. Angie received her last milk feed in the middle of October and had to get used to the idea that she was no longer getting her slurpies in along with Eve. Thankfully, like the others before her, she quickly adjusted to not getting any milk.

Eve’s turn to receive her last milk feed happened at the end of November, so she too is a big girl now. Both Angie and Eve are doing well without their milk and are still steadily munching on their lucerne meals.

Another important event occurred during October with the calves receiving their very first horn trimmings. Angie and Eve were not part of this procedure because they are still too young and their horns need to develop further. Thaba, Bula, Peter and Mango all had their horns trimmed. Rhino horns are made from keratin just like our fingernails and toenails, so they grow back. While we would prefer them never to undergo this procedure, all precautions are taken to ensure their safety from being poached.

The rhino dehorning procedure

First the rhinos are darted to sedate them. Their eyes are covered with a mask which also helps to keep them calm and ear plugs are inserted to lower the noise of the saw. A veterinary surgeon is present to mark the positions where the horns can be taken off and once this is done, the remaining stumps are smoothed. The rhinos are then given time to get back up again and recover.

The procedure is observed by a member of the Conservation department, and the horns are taken away to an undisclosed location for the protection of all concerned.

All the rhinos are doing well and enjoying the lush green bush now prevalent during the South African summer months.