Rare baby rhino gets special care
July 6, 1996
Web posted at: 10:30 p.m. EDT (0230 GMT)PRETORIA, South Africa (CNN) -- With only 4,000 black rhinoceroses left in the world, any addition to the population is a treasure. Xyant, a 2-month-old black rhino, is one of the precious additions.
When she was only 5 days old, she was taken from the Kruger National Park to a rehabilitation center near Pretoria in South Africa. She will begin her life away from the threat of poachers who covet the rhino's valuable horns.
The newest rhino was given the name Xyant, a Zulu word meaning "little one," and is being looked after by Karen Trendler. Xyant's real mother is still fighting for her life with a uterus infection and will never be able to care for her offspring.
Like any baby, Xyant demands a lot of care. She drinks specially-prepared milk every four hours and has two long walks, or runs, every day.
Trendler said being the rhino's foster mother is emotionally demanding.
"There is the cute, cuddly and appealing side to it, but there's another part to it," Trendler said. "It's very long hours, it's very hard work, you're battling often in situations where there isn't a lot of expertise available. There's no intensive care like in a hospital when a baby gets ill."
The public pressure can be demanding as well, Trendler said. "When you're looking after an animal like this, it's such a valuable animal and there's a tremendous pressure to make sure she survives, and she's doing well," she said.
Rhinos need close contact with their mothers but, unlike many other wild animals, they re-adapt quickly to the wild.
Xyant will be taken from the rehabilitation center and released in a game park when she is about 18 months old to learn the ways of the wild.
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