An elephant calf was reported in the Greater Kruger area with a severe neck snare. A helicopter was badly needed for the operation but the reserve had no funding for it, so Wild Wonderful World stepped in to cover the helicopter costs for the operation.

The elephant was darted from the helicopter and showed signs of the tranquiliser working within around 8 minutes. The pilot moved the rest of the elephant herd off a short distance to give the veterinary team a safe area to work on calf. The thick cable wire was embedded in the elephants neck so the vet first cut it off with wire cutters before attending to the severe wound - flushing it out and cleaning it intensively. Antisepetic and antibiotics were administered, before injecting a reversal drug to wake the young elephant up. The helicopter monitored the elephants for a short while from above to ensure the calf reunited with the herd, which it did successfully.

The vet, Dr Rogers is hopeful for a full recovery.