If you’ve had a read of our Causes page recently you’ll know that Game Rangers International are a charity working hard protect Zambia’s threatened wildlife. Love Nature is currently making two films with GRI, focusing on its Elephant Orphanage Project, which is involved in rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing orphaned elephants back into the wild.
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But you can help too: part of every subscription of our video streaming service goes towards supporting GRI and the fantastic projects they undertake.[/geoip-content] Here’s the latest update on the great work GRI has been doing recently, rescuing an adorable baby vervet named Jacky.
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Last month GRI-Zambia Primate Project (ZPP) received a call from a Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) officer from Chunga Command, to say that they had rescued a baby vervet that had been hit by a speeding vehicle in Kafue National Park. The vervet was rushed to the University of Zambia-UNZA vet clinic for examination and treatment, and without such quick veterinary intervention she would have perished.
The x-rays revealed a fracture on her skull along one of the growth plates and a fractured lower limb where there was also nerve damage.
The next day the vervet, named Jacky, started to have mini-seizures. Euthanasia was considered but as Jacky was eating well, defecating normally and had bags of fight and spirit it was decided that she should be closely monitored at UNZA’s vet clinic instead. Thankfully the seizures stopped after two days. The infection to the lower limb did not respond well to the antibiotics though and this coupled with the fracture and nerve damage the decision was taken to amputate her limb above the knee. This would give her the best possible chance of survival and a life back in the wild once rehabilitated. This operation was carried out successfully at UNZA on Tuesday 9th February.
Jacky has since made an amazing recovery and by Friday 12th, she was transferred into the care of Anna Tolan at Chipembele Wildlife Education Trust (CWET) for intensive rehabilitation and preparation for life back in the wild. The report so far say that she is feisty and has bonded well with the other rescued primates at Chipembele. The amputation wound has healed very nicely and has shown no sign of infection or inflammation. Her brain injury is resolving naturally, and she is as sharp as a button with all her faculties in tact. She is now spending the majority of the day with little Mica (Myk) another vervet, rescued by ZPP before Christmas.
So where there is life, there is hope! All in all so far so good as you can see from the attached photos. At GRI we are looking forward in time to support both Mica and Jacky to return to the wild together later in the year.