Rhino dies after anti-poaching chip operation

The animal was suspected to have had an underlying condition that triggered heart failure, the South African Press Association reported. "He responded very well to the treatment and the procedure is 100% safe, but there are always huge risks when such a large animal is sedated," said the owner of the 22-year-old rhino. According to Mail and Guardian, implanted tracking devices are one of the anti-poaching methods being tested in South Africa, where about 450 rhino were killed for their horns last year -- up from 13 in 2007.

News Day reports that the Rhino & Lion Nature Private Reserve near Pretoria calls in veterinarians to sedate rhinos so their horns can be treated with a dye and an insecticide, and tracking and identification devices can be inserted. Joseph Okori, a wildlife veterinarian and a World Wildlife Fund (WWF) rhino expert, was an independent observer of the procedure as part of WWF's research into anti-poaching techniques. Okori said he had sedated about 50 rhinos for various reasons, including relocation of the animals, in the last 15 years, one animal under his care had died, he said.

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