White rhino Amara completes a world-first surgery

Rhino in need of a surgery; world-first methods

Amara, the 800kg southern white rhino living at the Knowsley Safari Park in the UK, was recently found injured by the zoo staff.

“Earlier this year, Amara began limping on her right front leg,” Knowsley Safari Park reported. They shared that Amara was likely play fighting with her friends when she broke a bone in her front leg. 

“The Knowsley Safari team brought in specialist equine surgeons from the University of Liverpool to help with the diagnosis, where radiographs confirmed a fractured ulna.” The 2-year-old rhino was known for her energetic and often rowdy play antics; the zoo grew concerned when she suddenly abstained from playing with others. 

The Safari Park then brought in the University of Liverpool´s Leahurst Equine Hospital to help complete a surgery on Amara, as they assisted the team with their profound knowledge of horses; considered the most similar to rhinos regarding their physique. 

“Under anesthesia in Amara’s enclosure, the large team performed a lengthy operation, including key-hole surgery of Amara’s wrist, in a procedure lasting five hours,” stated the team. The little rhino was peacefully put to sleep as a team of 10 zoo keepers, surgeons, and equine specialists performed the surgery.

How the world-first Rhino surgery went

No evidence of such a surgery has ever been documented in the history of the Safari or elsewhere, making it a profound breakthrough in the veterinary world. Since the rhinos are part of the same order as horses – Perissodactyla- the veterinary experience of equine surgeons proved successful in healing little Amara by following the methods applied to horse surgeries. 

Amara spent 27 weeks in recovery, handling the restrictions of her cast with more patience than anticipated. “We were unsure if the cast would be strong enough and how Amara would cope with such a restriction on her limb,” revealed Dr. David Stack, senior lecturer in Equine Surgery at the University of Liverpool. He noted that although the team “hoped that she would accept it and that she would be able to move around, get down, and, importantly, back up again,” the world-first surgery was “unchartered water,” for the surgeons.

After weeks of having her arm supported by a full cast, Amara was free to spend time indoors with her mum Meru, before making a full recovery, and coming back to playing with other rhinos. 

Read more surprising news from the Euro Weekly.