Rescuers Dramatically Wrangle Giraffe Choking from Metal Wire, Try to Save Life
When you think about a giraffe, a lot of magnificent words come to mind. They might include graceful, majestic, beautiful, serene, and unique.
But some of the characteristics that make a giraffe so distinctive can also get in its way. Take, for example, that elegant long neck.
Recently, a giraffe at an African game reserve in Lubumbashi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, somehow got metal wire tangled around its neck. The animal began to strangle, and it also began to panic.
Video footage showing an intensive team rescue effort has quickly gone viral. The risky intervention required the strength and dedication of more than a half-dozen men.
The dramatic snippet shows this team shooting the frantic giraffe with a tranquilizer dart. Then, they’re forced to wrangle the frightened creature to the ground.
This is a dangerous but necessary maneuver, to be sure. The men needed hands-on access to the giraffe’s neck area.
At any time, however, the giraffe could have injured itself further — and the men doing the tackling might have been struck by its hooves, or giant head.
Thankfully, this courageous crew was totally committed to a positive outcome. They clearly worked together and handled the situation well as a team, even if this isn’t the sort of thing people are trained to deal with every day.
Neil Parsons, who led the rescue effort, explained the situation to media outlets. “Giraffes are one of the harder species to catch,” he said, noting that the animals are relatively easy to tranquilize but extremely tricky to subdue.
“To get them down without dying is a challenge,” Parsons observed.
But he also added that the wire around this terrified creature was constricting, so without human intervention “it probably would have cut into the neck and eventually killed the giraffe.”
Even more impressive? According to Parsons, none of his fellow rescuers even spoke English — but they obviously figured out effective ways to communicate regardless, for the sake of their fellow creature.
Once successfully freed, the male giraffe was carefully evaluated and then released to join the rest of its group (commonly called a “tower”). Reports indicate that the rescued giraffe is now healthy, active, and thriving.
This amazing rescue was caught on tape. It’s amazing that they were able to get in, help the giraffe, and get out so smoothly and without injury to any of the parties involved.
Are you wrestling with a problem of your own that feels somewhat suffocating? Consider a critical takeaway from this happy ending.
Namely, when we’re struggling we don’t always recognize people’s concerned efforts to help. Yet sometimes, what feels to us like an attempt to control is really a life-saving show of caring support.
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