Good News for Rhinos

Howard Buffett During his Speech

On the 14th of March 2014 something extraordinary happened.

Everyone who witnessed it knew that the poachers would be in for a surprise. Soon, very soon the rhinos would be able to live without being hassled by killers. For those of you who do not know, this extraordinary thing was Howard Buffett signing a R255 million, blue cheque to SANparks. Along with that, Standard Bank promised to donate R10 to SANparks for every tweet that used the #Aid4Rhinos, and do away with charges on this account.

The money that was donated would be used for technology, an intelligence system, for the rapid response tea. The helicopters and other equipment which is necessary to prevent poaching, and save the rhinos left in SA predominantly (SAN Parks), but also East and West Africa. This investment will help more than the animals, if less rhinos and elephants are poached then less money will be used to help fund the conflict in areas such as the Central African Republic and Uganda. So in the long run, if we stop poaching we are able to help save many victims of radical organisations all over Africa as well.

There is a reason that this money was given to the South African National Parks (SANparks). This is because we have the majority of the rhinos are in our country so if we can get a system to work here then the system can then be reproduced by other countries to save these animals.

This means that now our country has the funds to get the tools necessary to win the poaching war; we do however still need the support of all South Africans to educate and help conservation for future generations.

Saving the Survivors

We all know that hundreds of rhino were poached last year but I’m not sure how many people know that 1 in 5 poached rhino actually survives. That doesn’t mean that they are able to recover quickly and go back to their ordinary lives. No, it just means that they live a bit longer and without proper care they will die anyway.

That’s the facts. We can’t deny them but what we can do is help save these survivors. A few weeks ago there was a talk held by PPS and Profmed, there they explained what Saving the Survivors team has done to help save injured rhinos.

One such thing they did was buying software that can interpret CT scans but not for humans – rather for the rhinos. The used the knowledge  that the rhinos could only be on one side for 20 minutes or else they would get pins and needles/lose the blood supply to their back legs, to make sure the rhinos survived the operation with minimum side effects.

When the surgery was completed the Rhino’s receive a skin graft on her face to cover the area where her horn had been. The veterinarians soon realized they needed to find a way to enhance the method of skin grafting and sought input from a plastic surgeon. Recent developments now also include covering the skin graft with a metal plate to improve the chance of the wound recovery.

A Photograph of Thandi after her skin graft from (http://savingthesurvivors.co.za/save-the-survivors/)

8 Reasons Why I Love Being A Bookworm

My love with books began as soon as I learnt how to read. It began with the short stories with a single sentence per page and blossomed to four-hundred paged novels. After years of reading as much as I can there are still thousands of good books I have to still read. Yet there are people who don’t like reading. Sometimes it’s because they can’t find a good book but most of the time it’s because they haven’t been convinced to start reading as a hobby instead of a chore. Hopefully those people will enjoy this post. And for the ones who love reading feel free to add any other points that I’ve left out.

1. Reading takes me to different worlds and allows me to do new things.

2.      Whilst I’m being entertained authors secretly teach me interesting things.

3.      Book plots and characters full my daydreams and keep me occupied when I’m bored.

4.      With almost every book I read I gain some general knowledge so when it’s time to play Trivia I can wow my opponents.

5.      Movies take years to come out but considering many are based on books reading helps me to know the ending before the movie is even released.

6.      My knowledge of books and characters come in as handy conversation starters.

7.      Unlike when I watch a movie I get to choose what all the characters look like.

8.      And lastly reading gives me hope, courage, faith and a chance to laugh all of which I need to live a happy life.

So those are some of my reasons why I’m willing to risk getting a paper cut just so I can finish a book. What are your reasons?

Character Sketch

Everyone strives to be perfect at least once in their lives. It’s a tough goal to aspire to. So instead of giving up on this ideal I’ve decided to be the best me I can be.

After many hours of thought I’ve discovered the qualities that make us all successful. Get your bookmarks ready.

Katniss Everdeen:

One of the reasons why The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins has become so famous is because the characters are so relatable. Even though we’re not all fighting to the death we also face battles that we feel we have to win to survive. Through our fighting we learn so much about ourselves and we have the opportunity to ignite a flame of hope.

Peeta Mellark:

Another character from The Hunger Games who made hundreds of girls swoon. This wasn’t necessarily due to his handsome looks but rather because of his selfless acts. We need to be selfless and focus on helping others whilst on route to be the best we can be. In this way we will inspire others as well as meet amazing people.

Tris Prior:

The main character in the Divergent Trilogy by Veronica Roth, we all have pieces of her in us. I think she is one of the bravest characters I’ve ever read about (besides Katniss). In order to cease new opportunities that could change our lives we need to be brave and determined just like her.

Hermione Granger:

This cute little girl filled with knowledge who grows into being a heroine is from the Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling. She represents the inner genius who I know is inside every one of us. We just have to be confident enough to speak our minds and by doing that we’re taking a step towards our goals.

That’s why I love reading; because with every character I learn something new about myself and about the world around me. In this way authors around the world give us clues to living a more successful and a happier life. 

Alert Alert!!

Roses are one of the symbols for love and Valentine’s Day. But I’d like to steal your attention for just a second to remind you of something. It’s hard to blow the petals off a rose but once you bring a human into the situation the once beautiful flower instantly becomes a possible victim. Just like the Rhino species humans have the potential to damage it forever.

Now think of your favourite object in the world. We could harm that too.

I’m begging you to listen to me today; because poaching won’t just end when the rhino species goes extinct. No. It has haunted the world for hundreds of years. But that doesn't mean we’re in a helpless position. The human race is cleverer and is armed with tools that we wouldn't have dreamed about all those years ago. Though even with our new skills and ability to communicate instantly across the seas, this is not a task we can all handle alone.

Even if you don’t care about the rhino species, I need you to know that elephants, wild dogs, baboons, tigers and rhinos amongst hundreds of other species are being poached. This is not a laughing matter. If I, a 15 year old girl, can make a difference then imagine the change that could happen if the youth of the world stood up for these animals.

Because we’re all they have.

FEATURE FRIDAY!!

It's finally Friday and this time I have something really cool to tell you all.

This week wasn't just and ordinary week for me because I was interviewed by BOOKISH TREASURES!!!

It was the second time I was interviewed as an author and I'm really excited about it. Please click on the link below:

http://bookishtreasures.blogspot.co.uk/

Will blog again soon I pinki promise :) 

Enjoy reading

Unicorns All Over Again

Legend has it there were once majestic animals that roamed the earth. Their coats were a dazzling white and their manes as soft as silk. They had a pearl coloured horn at the top of their heads. The unicorns were known to be peaceful and were respected by many of the other animals. Yet one day whilst a shimmer of unicorns were grazing they were approached by a land walker they had never seen before, a human. At first the unicorns became friends with the humans but later on the people turned on them and began to hunt them. Not being able to talk the unicorns didn’t know that they were being hunted because of the magical properties of their horns. They weren’t able to beg the humans to stop. All they could do was carry on living until they were poached. And eventually they all were.

You see:

So, even though our parents, teachers and leaders tell us how important it is to learn your lesson this clearly isn’t the case. Whether or not unicorns did roam the earth we know what happened to them because of the greed that consumes our species. And what is even worse than the fact that this is happening to our rhinos is the fact that there ARE NO MEDICINAL OR MAGIC PROPERTIES in rhino horns.

If you simply read this and carry on with your life ignoring this plight; I want you to know that if rhinos go extinct they will eventually become a legend too. It’s time for you to stand up and fight to save this animal.