Operation kudu rescue

In November last year my wife Ina and I went on a romantic break to the Kameeldoring chalet in the Mokala National Park. It’s unbelievably hot and the area is dry. You almost feel like you want to pass away when you’re lying on the bed. A small bird flew into the frame of the open window and landed dazed on the floor. It appeared to be gasping for air and I tried to revive it with a block of ice. After a short while it looked better and flew away. The concrete waterhole was teeming with animals coming to drink. One day, at sunset, a kudu slipped into the waterhole and didn’t get up. During the night we heard her bellow, and unfortunately she didn’t make it. The park’s staff came to remove the carcass. The next day at sunset an old kudu bull with trophy horns came walking up to the waterhole. He also slipped, fell, and landed with his rear in the waterhole – and his hindlegs couldn’t get a grip on the ground. Ina and I looked at each other: We didn’t want to see another animal die. We headed down to the waterhole – me with my camp chair that I wanted to use as a tool to help the animal from behind. Ina stood to the side and distracted it, while I walked into the water behind it. I managed to get the chair in underneath its behind and I gave him a slap on the buttocks. He wormed himself out of the water slightly, but couldn’t escape completely. With another slap or two and help from the chair I managed to get him over the side of the waterhole. After initially laying in the mud, he got up and walked off. Later that night our break ended on a high note: A white rhino came to drink at the waterhole! We couldn’t have asked for more.