A heroic wildlife rescue team has managed to save a mother elephant’s life after she was spotted wandering the plains in Zimbabwe with a hunter’s snare attached to her leg.
Catherine Norton, 58, a conservationist living in Zimbabwe, was called to the Musango Island Safari Camp after the owner saw the adult elephant, named Martha, struggling to walk.
Catherine said: “We had to immobilize Martha, because without our intervention she would have died.
“There was a wire snare digging deep into her left front leg, crippling her and causing severe pain.”
“We had to clean the wound and as it was infected, give her antibiotics, and remove the snare with wire cutters.
“It only took her a few minutes to come around but the outcome could have been so much worse.”
Catherine said one poacher could set up to twenty snares a day. The wound can leave the animal “suffering for days.”
“It shows how much damage can be done to an innocent animal with just one piece of wire,” Catherine said.
“Poaching isn’t just about shooting and axes,” she added.
“This method is just as cruel and equally as deadly.”
Catherine said Martha had a calf with her that was “still dependent on her.” If the rescue team hadn’t acted in time, the mother elephant would have died.
