Sweet Little Rhino Who Watched His Mother be Brutally Killed by Poachers Needs our Help

Across the world, rhinos are being killed for their horns at alarming rates. Tragically, their horns are wrongly believed to contain medicinal properties, despite being composed of keratin, the very same protein that makes up our hair and nails. Yet, because of demand for rhino horn, wildlife poachers have pushed almost every rhino subspecies in the world to the brink of extinction. In fact, at least three rhinos are killed for their horns every single day.

Luckily, SanWild Rhino Sanctuary is working to help this species by taking in orphans and working to rehabilitate them. Take this baby rhino, Vinnie, for example. Poachers brutally murdered his mother, but he did not give up. Despite being hacked with a machete, Vinnie stood by his dying mother’s side.

Louise Joubert of the SanWild Rhino Sanctuary wrote on Facebook, “Can one truly imagine his fear at the time? I don’t think so. Of course there will be some that will say animals do not experience fear like we do, but fortunately, I know better. It must have been hell for him.”

When game rangers found him a few days later, he was severely dehydrated, wounded, and traumatized. Thankfully, he was taken to a family that raised him until he was healthy rhino teenager. Joubert writes,”As Vinnie is about to become a young adult, the time has come for him to join a new family of rhinos in a safe sanctuary where he can live wild and free.”

SanWild has launched a Generosity.com campaign to secure funds that will help them find Vinnie a safe home with a new rhino family in a secret protected location. Joubert describes this as sort of witness protection program for rhinos.

That’s where you come in. By making a donation to the SanWild Rhino Sanctuary, you’ll help Vinnie find a new, safe home. With only a handful of the world’s rhinos left in the wild, we all have a part to play in ensuring this species doesn’t become extinct. Share this post and encourage others to stand up for this struggling species!

To learn more about SanWild, check out their website.

All Image Source: Louise Joubert/Facebook