Another mass de-horning of all the rhinos in Pilanesberg National Park. Thank you to the public for your cooperation and participation. As a means to keep our rhinos safe we dehorn them as often as possible. After years of rhinos being slaughtered the decision was made to dehorn the rhinos in Pilanesberg until a safer, less invasive method can be found. At the same time as the dehorning was taking place, the rhinos we also tagged with satellite tracking tags. Many thanks to Dr Louis van Schalkwyk for persevering with this option and thank you to US Fish and Wildlife with Endangered Wildlife Trust for making the funds available for the Pilanesberg rhinos. University of Pretoria and Veterinary Services Onderstepoort also had a study at the same time to monitor the effects of the drugs used and the impact of dehorning on the rhino. A lot was going on and it was a very hectic and intense 8 days.
All went really well under the circumstances, and we hope that our rhinos will be more secure than ever. Thank you to Toyota for being a major sponsor of this event. Thank you, John Thomson, for your passion and dedication to rhinos and for making a difference. Your support is hugely appreciated.
Thank you to Flying for Freedom, Tokkie and Marina Botes, for the ongoing support of the Pilanesberg rhinos. We are extremely grateful. Thank you to the Pilanesberg Wildlife Trust donors for making this project possible – the PWT carried the bulk of the project costs. Thank you to Copenhagen Zoo for making funds available for the catering of the event. Thank you to all who assisted, volunteered and supported, in no particular order: Caron Botes, Lottie Marais, Gerhardus Scheepers, Dolph Vd Merwe, Julian Kooy, Ncita Cornél, Cathy du Toit, Carolyn Gordon, Joseph Motshkwane, Hendrik Ncheche, Wessel Wessels, Andrew Jackson, Mike Bell and Lynda Hedges Bell, Christopher Stafford, Cleo, Jordan Dobson, Tshiamo Dibane, Nash, Chris Burger, Carl Juncker, Dawid Vet, and everyone else that played a role one way or another. Every bit of support is appreciated.
This is a massive project to put together and to execute in perfect detail so that no aspect of the project is compromised in any way, which it wasn’t.
Thank you, Steve Dell, for your example and dedication to this project and to conservation as a whole. You are an amazing role model. Thank you for all that you represent. Many visitors asked where to donate. The rhino dehorning project runs in excess of R2 million so every and any amount is appreciated. You can donate on our website by clicking the link below or on PayPal using email donations@pwt.org.za. Bank details for EFT donations are also provided at the bottom of the website. Please note that the PWT is a NPO and a PBO, and can therefore issue you an 18A tax certificate for your donation. Thank you for your support.
