Phila is to go home

The black rhino has recovered at the Joburg Zoo from wounds inflicted by poachers, and is ready to return to the wild.
PHILA, the young black rhino that survived poachers, is ready to start a new life.

After a year at the zoo, Phila is going back homeAfter a year at the zoo, Phila is going back homeFor over a year, the Johannesburg Zoo has been a safe home for Phila, where it has received medical attention and was able recuperate from gunshot wounds inflicted by poachers. The five-year-old black rhino was shot nine times by poachers in two separate incidents.

The female rhino arrived at the zoo on 25 October 2010 from Modimolle in Limpopo Province, where it was part of a breeding programme set up to help save the endangered black rhino species from extinction.

“She has been in holding camp at the zoo to recover medically for her safe return to her home determined by her owner, Alan Salkinder,” says Louise Gordon, the zoo’s executive manager of marketing and education.

The date of Phila’s release and its new home will not be made public because of concerns for its safety.

Zoo staff and veterinarians who were very involved in the animal’s care are happy with its progress and condition. “The zoo staff is happy that this remarkable survivor is soon heading back to the wild,” adds Gordon.

According to Brett Gardener, the zoo’s vet, Phila had the resilience to pull through the first three months after the attacks, when its survival was quite uncertain. “Her sense of smell and hearing was questionable at the time [but] subsequently through observation these seem to have returned to normal.”

Phila’s behaviour and responses are monitored three times a day by zoo keepers tasked with the rhino’s care and wellbeing. They have observed that Phila is responding positively to sound and treats.

Wounds
Most of its wounds have healed very well. However, one or two are still in the healing process but “they will heal very well over time”, Gordon explains.

“It is essential considering the plight of rhinos throughout Africa that she returns to breeding. The plan was never to breed with Phila in the zoo, since she was housed in the holding camp intended for medical treatment and observation.”

Phila had been very popular among zoo visitors, and had attracted much media attention. As a result, most people had become aware of the cruelty poachers did to rhinos, explained Alice Masombuka, the zoo’s keeper of pachyderms, at a march against rhino poaching held on 11 November.

Phila’s reproductive cycle has been checked by zoo keepers through faecal monitoring of progesterone. “Hopefully she will fall pregnant once she leaves the zoo,” says Gordon.

The zoo and its many visitors, both South Africans and citizens of the world, will miss Phila. “Our wish is for her to lead a productive life in a safe environment. We thank her owner for giving us the opportunity to care for her and to get to know her.”

During its stay at the zoo, Phila’s story moved people to donate to it through the zoo’s Adopt An Animal programme. It encourages individuals, schools and companies to donate money for the care and feeding of an animal of their choice. The donor receives a certificate with their name and the name of their chosen animal.

Phila was adopted by Pam Golding, the estate agent group, which donated R10 000 to its care. Other donors were Wonderware, the software company, which donated R20 000; and the Grade 4 learners from the North American International School, who donated R7 000.