Escondido, California - Nola, a critically endangered 41-year-old northern white rhino, is undergoing medical treatment at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. Keepers noticed a swelling on Nola’s right hip late last week and began monitoring the area. The swelling continued to grow over a few days, causing concern for the elderly animal.
On Saturday, in an attempt to find out if the affected area was an abscess or something else causing the swelling, the veterinary team lanced the growth. "We found the swelling was consistent with a large abscess, filled with pus," stated Meredith Clancy, associate veterinarian, San Diego Zoo Safari Park. "We were able to flush the area with sterile saline and will wait on tests results to determine what is going on with Nola."
The rhino, a favorite of the animal care team and Safari Park guests, doesn’t appear sick outwardly so veterinarians are hoping the swelling is a walled-off abscess that isn’t affecting her systemically, or affecting her entire body. Nola has been put on a course of antibiotics as a precautionary measure. She will be carefully monitored, having the area flushed on a daily basis. Test results from fluid and tissues samples taken on Saturday should be available within a week to two weeks.
Nola is an exceptional rhino in more ways than one. She has a great relationship with her keepers and due to her ongoing, age-related medical needs, they interact with her in ways they might not be able to do with other rhinos. During her examination, she walked slowly through the field with both her keepers and the veterinary team, allowing the veterinarians to aspirate fluid from the abscess site. "Nola is a great patient," added Clancy.
Nola is one of just five northern white rhinos left in the world. Three other northern white rhinos are in the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya and one is in the Dvur Kralove Zoo in the Czech Republic. The five remaining rhinos are all non-reproductive.Poaching for its horn has brought the northern white rhino to such critically low numbers.
Currently, a rhino is poached every eight hours in South Africa. With dramatically low populations of all five rhino species, rhinos could become extinct in 15 years. On Endangered Species Day, May 15, the Safari Park will be holding a "Rally 4 Rhinos" to raise awareness of the plight of rhinos and the urgent need to protect them for future generations. A ceremony will take place at the Safari Park’s African Plains Overlook beginning at 9:30 a.m. and will include guest speakers, special entertainment and a sky art project. For more information, visit www.Rally4Rhinos.org
Bringing species back from the brink of extinction is the goal of San Diego Zoo Global. As a leader in conservation, the work of San Diego Zoo Global includes on-site wildlife conservation efforts (representing both plants and animals) at the San Diego Zoo, the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, and San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research, as well as international field programs on six continents. The work of these entities is made accessible to children through the San Diego Zoo Kids network reaching out through the Internet and in children’s hospitals nationwide. The work of San Diego Zoo Global is made possible by the San Diego Zoo Global Wildlife Conservancy and is supported in part by the Foundation of San Diego Zoo Global.
