Poachers Just Tried To Kill This Rhino — But Rescuers Refused To Let Her Die

It's so incredible to see her running back home.

Micaela is a wild southern white rhino living in South Africa — and she just barely got her life back. 

White rhino who survived poaching attempt in South Africa
Saving the Survivors

Micaela had been shot in an apparent poaching attempt last week. The bullet hit her in the upper part of her back.

Rescuers from Saving the Survivors, a group that saves injured wild animals, sprung into action to help her. 

Warning: Graphic images below

White rhino who survived poaching attempt in South Africa
Saving the Survivors

Poaching remains a rampant problem for rhinos everywhere. And South Africa alone, where domestic trade of rhino horn recently became legal again, saw 1,028 rhinos killed just last year for their horns — a product in high demand for use in traditional medicine in Asia. It's estimated that there are just about 30,000 rhinos left in the whole world.

So every single rhino life counts for the future of the species. 

White rhino getting treated for poaching attempt in South Africa
Saving the Survivors

Micaela was given anesthesia so that the vet team could examine her with a portable X-ray machine that showed exactly where the bullet was lodged. Then she was given surgery to remove the bullet and her wounds were treated with antibiotics.

X-ray of poacher's bullet in white rhino
Saving the Survivors
Poacher's bullet taken from white rhino by rescuers in South Africa
Saving the Survivors

Micaela's rescue story is happy news for rhino lovers around the world who are grieving the death of Sudan, the last male northern white rhino, who died of age-related illness this week at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya.

Just as Micaela woke up from the procedure, a camera was poised to capture her reaction to her life being saved. She sprung to her feet and bounded into the distance. Her rescuers are confident she'll make a full recovery.

To help save more rhinos like Micaela, you can make a donation to Saving the Survivors.