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Doctor's good ideas save rhinos - 9th September 2022

Nearly 80 percent of the world's rhinos are found in South Africa. It's unsafe there and in 2021, 450 animals were killed.

They're attacked for their white horns. In Asia, these are used in medicine. One horn from an adult rhino sells for thousands of dollars.

The rhino babies are left alone and in danger. They weigh only 20 kilograms at birth and need full-time care.

At the Rhino Orphanage, a place for babies without parents, Doctor Pierre Bester's the top vet. He's always thinking of ways to help.

Dr Pierre Bester: "Firstly, mostly, their mothers have been poached. So they, from two weeks, three weeks, a month, six months – but all come here and you handle them differently. And you get them and you put them in crèches, put them in, in – give them a friend and then they cope."

The young rhinos are usually upset after losing their mothers. The people who take care of them sometimes sleep nearby. This helps the babies stay calm.

Dr Bester has other good ideas too. For example, he provides the rhinos with a friend, such as a sheep. His clever solutions help make the Rhino Orphanage a success.

Yolande van der Merwe: "Working with Dr. Pierre is – it's amazing. We are so incredibly privileged to have a vet that's not a textbook vet, that thinks outside the box, that is willing to do things alternatively. He's very clever. He always finds a solution. He always makes a plan."

Recently, the orphanage has changed its location. It's top secret, to make sure the animals are kept out of danger.

Meanwhile, Dr Bester continues to have excellent ideas to help the rhinos.