I wish this was a happy story, but sadly, not every sick or injured animal found by a rescue can be saved. No matter how much you try, sometimes the best you can do is make the animal’s final days comfortable and full of love.
About a month ago, I shared the story of Jazz and Hunter .
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Jazz was only a couple of days old when a farmer found him abandoned in the South African wilderness.
The little giraffe had been left by his mom, and was dehydrated and starving.
Knowing the baby giraffe needed help ASAP, they contacted The Rhino Orphanage.
Though giraffe’s aren’t their focus, the rescue took the baby in and did their best to revive him.
Jazz was hooked up to an IV and it became a waiting game to see if he’d wake up.
But the carers at the rescue didn’t need to worry about leaving Jazz alone, because their anti-poaching guard dog, Hunter took a shine to the baby giraffe.
Hunter stayed by Jazz’s side for the entire 18 hours it took for the baby to wake from his coma.
And he continued staying by Jazz as he began standing on his own and even learning to eat leaves.
It was touch and go for a while, but Jazz began to recover and Hunter was right there by his side.
Hunter refused to leave Jazz’s side for days and the staff at The Rhino Orphanage thought it was a good sign when Hunter began feeling comfortable leaving Jazz alone occasionally.
Jazz had also begun making short visits outside.
He’d explore and taste the different trees for a couple of hours each day before he received his daily round of medications for his eyes.
It was Hunter who realized something was wrong.
Jazz had been treated for blood pooling in his eyes, which the vet had assumed was due to the hours he was in a coma after being discovered.
But a couple of days before Jazz passed, Hunter began spending all of his time in the giraffe’s room again.
Jazz was shaky and blood had begun to pool in his eyes again.
He collapsed and passed away with Hunter and all the rescue’s staff by his side.
The vet discovered Jazz had brain haemorrhaging, which could be due to a genetic defect that wasn’t easy to see. He couldn’t regulate his blood pressure on his own.
It’s possible that Jazz’s mother sensed that he couldn’t survive in the wild, which is why she abandoned him.
As for Hunter, they say that he sat outside Jazz’s room for a while before going to his human family for comfort.
But Hunter clearly learned a lot from caring for Jazz.
A recent video shared by the rescue shows how he’s begun helping an injured baby rhino that was just rescued.
If you’d like to learn more about Hunter or support The Rhino Orphanage, be sure to follow them on Facebook .
