A young gorilla living in an African ape sanctuary, after being shot by poachers, has been given a new lease of life thanks to British vets with the help of TNT Express.
When TNT was called for help in the treatment of 10-year-old Shufai, who required vital surgery to his injured arm, TNT’s Special Services division swung into action, shipping an essential piece of x-ray equipment to the team performing the operation.
The fragile and valuable x-ray machine needed specialist care while shipping it to Cameroon and TNT is expert in delivering under pressure. The specialist kit was collected from the zoo in Warwickshire and flown to Yaounde in Cameroon via Paris.
Twycross Zoo turned to TNT because of its expertise in UK and international deliveries of out of the ordinary parcels, perhaps because of their weight, unusual shape, high value or hazardous contents.
Alistair Cochrane, Managing Director TNT Express Services UK & Ireland, said: “It is all about offering greater choice. Whether we are delivering urgent equipment to help a gorilla in the Cameroon jungle or supplies of blood or organs for the NHS Blood Transplant authority, we have a solution to suit customers’ needs.”
Shufai, a lowland gorilla who was severely injured as an infant when hunters killed his mother in the Cameroon jungle was rescued by conservation group Ape Action Africa and has been undergoing physical and emotional treatment in a sanctuary in Mefou National Park.
Three British vets, including Sharon Redrobe, Zoological Director at Twycross Zoo, flew to Mefou to operate on Shufai’s damaged arm. Sharon and the surgical team were, sadly, unable to save Shufai’s arm which was amputated after x-rays revealed irreparable damage.
Sharon said: "Pre-surgery x-rays on Shufai showed the damage to his wrist had worsened and soon after starting the operation we had to make the difficult decision to amputate his arm above the elbow. We wouldn’t have been able to establish the extent of the injury without the machine TNT kindly shipped for us.”
Shufai is now healing well from his surgery and he has even been spotted in the forest chest-beating with one arm.