Save the rhino parade – giving a helping hand to our horny friends

On Thursday 22 September, the green24 team attended a World Rhino Day event, to publicise the plight of rhino poaching in Asia and Africa. Current statistics suggest that a rhino is poached every 22 hours in South Africa, and that at the current rate of killing, we will witness the extinction of this animal in our lifetime.

The reason for this poaching is to fuel the Asian markets that sell rhino horn as a medicinal aid for a variety of illnesses. It has been scientifically proven that rhino horn has no medicinal qualities, but high-powered politicians and traditional medicine practitioners still promote the use and trade of this resource in China, Vietnam and a variety of other Asian states.

The rhino is not the only animal being brought to the brink of extinction because of the poaching of their parts for the traditional medicine trade in Asia. Tigers, bears, sharks, pangolins and countless other species are all being heavily targeted to feed the insatiable demand for these products.

If we don’t take a stand now and use our voices to educate and empower those that may not know about either the poaching plight or the non-medicinal qualities of most of the animal products traded, then we will see the extinction of hundreds of species of animals in our lifetime!

A take-home message from the event asked: “Will our kids get to see a rhino in the wild?” What a sobering thought considering that we have reduced their numbers from millions, to a few thousand in the last 100 years. And all in the name of greed and ignorance.

Check out Save the Rhino, Rhino Conservation, or Stop Rhino Poaching for more information, and play your part in stopping the poaching of rhinos and other precious animals.