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Scars of a Snare Survivor: How Far Albino Orphan Khanyisa Has Come!
"For our new followers who may not know Khanyisa’s journey and for our old supporters who have been there for every step and milestone, we’re taking a look back here at Sunshine’s rehabilitation — the progression of her wounds. With the help of wildlife vet, Dr Peter Rogers, and our care team, Khanyisa’s wounds managed to heal beautifully — leaving her with scars that are barely visible, but that remind us of the pain she has overcome.
Khanyisa was rescued in January 2020, having survived several days on her own in the wild, severely injured from a snare that had wrapped itself around her head, severing the top lobe of her left ear and causing severe lacerations around her head, neck, mouth and cheeks. The four-month-old calf somehow freed the snare from the ground, but it remained wrapped around her, continually rubbing and cutting into her flesh.
It is unclear if her herd had abandoned the albino calf before she was ensnared or after the incident. The fact that she survived so long in the wild is a miracle; she was dehydrated, and her eyes had swollen shut from pressure building from the snare and the swelling around her head.
The most significant part of her rehabilitation process was the long yet successful treatment of her wounds. The open flesh of her deep mouth wounds from the snare had maggots feeding off the decaying flesh. The maggots created gaping holes into her mouth. First, we had to treat the calf’s wounds to combat infection and keep them clean. Once satisfied that all possible infection had cleared, Wildlife Vet, Dr. Peter Rogers began with the stitching of her wounds.
In the beginning of January, Dr Rogers stitched up the cheek and mouth wounds. At the end of January, he stitched the back of her right ear. Adine started with stemcell treatment on Khanyisa’s wounds in March, to assist in the final stage of healing. The skin-restoring serum combines plant-derived stem cells cultivated from Argan tree and Comfrey roots and helped to regenerate the dry and damaged skin, with a natural extract from the aerial part of Onopordum Acanthium, to increase skin turnover. The treatment was successful; her wounds had healed entirely by the end of March.
During these milestones, Khanyisa suffered occasional bouts of diarrhoea, which is always disconcerting with elephant calves. Diarrhoea can be brought upon from PTSD, bacteria, teething or dietary challenges as their nutritional needs consistently change as a calf grows. But the HERD team, working continuously throughout the COVID-19 Lockdown, saw to every hurdle with efficient care and managed to help the calf through these bouts, with the assistance of Dr Rogers and trusted elephant advisors."
HERD Elephant Orphanage South Africa
https://herd.org.za/
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Note: the sheep at about the 6:40 mark is Lammie, who was essential to Khanyisa's emotional well-being in the early days and they remain best friends to this day.
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