Elephant Calmly Asks For Help After Living With Infected Bullet Lodged In Skull

An elephant has survived after being shot in the head by poachers in Zimbabwe. The male bull was found with a hole in his head just five cm above the post that would have meant a certain 'killshot', vets say. They suspect poachers are responsible but think the elephant was shot outside the Mana Pools park and made his way inside for treatment.

Vets from the Aware Trust said it can sometimes be a race against time to find animals that are injured, but the 'gentle' bull made himself known and showed no signs of aggression. Dr Lisa Marabini told the BBC: 'It's like it knew we were there with the intention of helping it. We think it was shot outside the park and came inside for refuge.' A spokesman for the trust added: ''Hurry up and wait' is a common saying in wildlife circles as it usually takes more time to find the animal than it does to treat it.

'Not so on 13 June - when Pretty Boy heard they'd arrived in Mana Pools he made himself available for examination within half an hour, coming right up to their car. 'An extremely gentle and relaxed bull, the vets managed to get a good look at what immediately became apparent was a hole going into his forehead.' The vets were able to tranquilise him and searched for the bullet but it was impossible to find the exact position because his skull is so big, it is difficult to X-ray from different angles.

They nicknamed him Pretty Boy after removing bone fragments from the around the bullet, lodged five cm beneath the surface of the wound. He is likely to make a full recovery. A spokesman for the Aware Trust said: 'Pretty Boy was given ultra-long acting anti-biotics and parasiticides. 'The vets were worried his weak back might interfere with him getting to his feet after reversal, but he recovered uneventfully and then lay his head against a tree and dozed for half an hour. 'The following day he was feeling much happier and very relaxed, and allowed Stretch, Keith and Lisa (the vets) to get very close to him for a final assessment.
Source: MailOnline