News & Blog


2018-09-16
Sick and Injured animals in Marloth Park


Marloth Park was recently in the news (On Facebook) for the wrong reasons. A few days ago a photo of a Warthog with a snare was shared, this Warthog not being able to feed. Then someone commented that the same Warthog was already reported in August and a whole lot of bad stories came out of animals being shot instead of helped.

As with most things there is a long history in Marloth Park regarding its animals and the unfortunate culling which needs to take place every now and then. Every since the fence between Marloth and Kruger was put up controlling the numbers of animals became a problem and quite often leads to heated debates on Social Media, even reaching the courts.

Picture from Facebook

Liz Balaam posted this on 12 September 2018 to the Marloth Wildlife Fund on facebook"

" There has been a lot of speculation recently regarding the treatment of sick or injured animals. It appears that everybody has been misinformed regarding a supposed interdict that prevented the rangers from euthanizing animals in distress. Our hands have been tied as the rangers were specifically instructed that they may not discharge their weapons in Marloth Park, and that if they did and a charge was laid against them it could lead to their arrest.

We were also advised by the vets that when an animal is euthanized with the use of drugs, the carcass of the animal had to be buried in a hole deep enough so predators could not dig it up and it also could not be buried near a water course which could cause contamination of the water sources. Using vets to euthanize an animal is also a very costly exercise and utilizes a lot of manpower.

So, we were stuck between a rock and a hard place. There have also been accusations that the rangers and the Wildlife Fund “do not care”. Nothing could be further from the truth. We do care. We care very deeply. Although we are happy to contribute to assist our animals we do not have a bottomless pot of money. Funds are limited and must be used in the best way possible to benefit the wildlife.

Our committee has done a lot of investigation over the past few days, as we wanted the true facts of the matter, not just hearsay. We started looking for the interdict, but had little success. Eventually, with the help of MPPOA and the attorneys, we have now received confirmation from the attorneys who were involved in the process. I am quoting from an e-mail received from the attorneys which states :-

“We have perused our file and there is no interdict. The matter was postponed sine die and should the matter have been brought up again it was to have been discussed between the parties. Our file is now closed with regards to that specific matter.”

The above has nothing whatsoever to do with any interdict brought regarding culling.

Furthermore, the head ranger has spoken to the MTPA regarding shooting our animals that are injured or in distress. The MTPA have advised that the rangers have the authority to euthanise when necessary. The MTPA is the final authority in matters such as this.

So – we now have the truth in writing and the correct facts.

We would now like to once again set out the correct procedures when an animal is injured or in distress.

1. First and foremost call the rangers – 082 802 5894
2. The rangers will decide if the animal is beyond help, in which case they will shoot it. If the rangers decide that the animals can be helped they will call the Wildlife Fund.
3. The Wildlife Fund will contact the vet, and every effort will be made by our volunteers to keep eyes on the animal until the vet arrives.
4. The animal will be treated by the vet, and the Wildlife Fund will bear the cost. We would like to thank our resident vet, Dr Piet, who has offered his services at a greatly reduced cost.

We also wish to catagorically state that despite the opinion of some people, the rangers DO NOT poach our animals. They DO NOT just shoot animals so they can take the carcass home for meat. The rule is that once the animal has been shot the carcass will be put into Lionspruit for the predators. "

I share this for future reference as it seems as if the information comes form a reliable source and it may assist in the event of a sick or injured animal being spotted in Marloth Park. Marloth Park has many committees and organisations and different Facebook groups. I am not sure who Liz Balaam refers to when she says we.

Should you wish to support the Marloth Wildlife Fundthen you can find more information on their website: http://www.marlothwildlifefund.com/ or join them on Facebook . https://www.facebook.com/groups/637956502980068/