Tanda, the 25-year-old rhinoceros who lives at the Ramat Gan Safari, is about to head off to a new home in Switzerland, Israel Hayom reported Tuesday.
The rhino has faced health problems with her eyes in recent years, exacerbated by flies in the hot Israeli climate. Tanda has been wearing a mask to try and stop flies getting into her eyes and, in recent months, has undergone alternative treatments with an alternative animal therapist to soothe her irritation.
Transporting a rhinoceros is a complex operation but she won’t be going it alone. Two of her four daughters, Tatini and Tashi, as well as another male rhino, two-year-old Remy, will be taking the trip together, preparations for which are already underway.
It is thought that Tanda’s new home in the cooler Zurich climate will improve her quality of life significantly and caretakers hope she will adjust well.
Tanda is a southern white rhinoceros, a species that has been poached almost to extinction. A white rhino's horn could be sold for up to $3,000 a pound in the black market, according to National Geographic Magazine.
The Ramat Gan Safari leads Europe in the number of rhinos born, due to the success of a breeding program. Over seventy zoos in Europe have taken part in the program to combat the loss of endangered species such as the white rhinoceros. Altogether the project has protected 300 rhinos. Out of those, over 30 are in the Ramat Gan Safari.
Earlier this year the park saw the birth of a northern white rhino named Rainy-Rafiki.
“Rainy” was for the rainy weather the country experienced this year and Rafiki, which means “friend” in Swahili, a gesture toward the strengthening relations between the Ramat Gan Safari and the Tanzanian Embassy.
The embassy celebrated the first anniversary of the establishment of its embassy in Tel Aviv in May and Tanzania marked its 55th year of independence in April.
