In yet another heart-wrenching video, a baby rhino is seen trying to wake up its dead mom – which was killed by poachers for her horn.
The incident reportedly took place in South Africa and the video which was initially shared on Twitter has now been going viral across social media.
According to the person filming the video, the baby rhino was apparently spared to grow old with the horn and perhaps face the same fate as her mother. He can be seen desperately trying to wake his mother up and suckle some milk, to no response.
According to an Independent UK report, the video is said to have been filmed in February this year, in a national park in South Africa – after poachers had killed the adult rhino and took off its horn.
The baby rhino was later blindfolded, to relieve him of some stress and was fed with a bottle, before being tranquilized and taken to an wildlife rescue shelter by rescuers.
The picture of poaching !!
A baby #rhino tries to wake #mother, who is killed by poachers for the #horn. Devastating & eye opening. pic.twitter.com/EnAS2PAHiD
— Parveen Kaswan, IFS (@ParveenKaswan) July 2, 2019
As heartbreaking as it is, this isn’t a standalone incident.
Between 2013 and 2017, South Africa has seen the killing/poaching of 1000 rhinos – each year, according to a report from savetherhino.org – all due to the age-old misconception that the rhino horn is of some supreme medicinal value.
Considering the fact that the species is on the verge of extinction, it is better we act sooner, before there’s no turning back.