Injured South African rhino that lost horns in poacher attack undergoes complex treatment
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A rhino in South Africa that survived an attack by poachers who cut off her horns, leaving a massive wound on her face, has had a setback in her medical treatment.
A conservation group, Saving the Survivors, said Friday that veterinarians removed a protective mask from the rhino because she damaged it by rubbing her face against enclosure walls. The cast was placed on the 4-year-old rhino's face in a surgery on May 18 in Eastern Cape province.
Poachers darted the rhino with a tranquilizer and severed her horns while she was sedated. The rhino's rescuers named her Hope.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Veterinarian William Fowlds says Hope's face shield must be left off for now, despite concerns about infection, and that there are indications that the wound is healing.