By Avila Geraldine.
KOTA KINABALU: The worst has come to pass.
Wildlife experts here bade a sad farewell to Puntung, one of Malaysia’s three remaining Sumatra rhinos, who was put down after a brief battle against cancer.
Sabah Wildlife director Augustine Tuuga said the euthanasia procedure was performed at between 7am and 8am at the Tabin Wildlife Reserve in Lahad Datu.
In a statement, he said the 25-year-old female rhino was placed under close observation prior to her death.
“Her keepers, Wilson Kuntil, Hassan Sani and Samad Gubin had been sleeping for the past week with Puntung in her forest paddock.
“They were very attuned to subtle changes in her behaviour and reported periodic bleeding from the nostrils.
“The carcinoma had been growing rapidly in size and there were clear signs
that Puntung was experiencing significant breathing difficulties,” he said.
After consulting rhino reproduction advisers at Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research in Berlin and others, Tuuga said, the decision was made to end Puntung’s agony and bring forward the date of the procedure.
“Previously, we were planning to do it on June 15. In pursuit of the aim to allow Puntung to contribute to the survival of her species, her ovaries were rushed to the Agro-Biotechnology Institute in Serdang,” he added.
Tuuga also said Indonesian reproductive specialist Prof Arief Boediono was ready to recover any egg cells that may be present.
“If any oocytes can be retrieved and matured, frozen sperm from the male rhino Tam
will be thawed for intracytoplasmic sperm injection by Prof Arief. We will know the outcome within a few days.
“In addition, tissue samples from Puntung are being provided to Malaysian institutions so that her genome can be preserved through cell cultures,” added Tuuga.
Puntung was recently diagnosed with the deadly squamous cell skin cancer, which spread rapidly after she underwent an operation in April to extract two molars and a premolar from the upper left side of her jaw.
Tuuga had said two subsequent biopsies after Puntung’s successful surgery revealed squamous cell carcinoma.
Specialists from various countries had agreed that the cancer would be fatal, with or without treatment.
The remaining female rhino Iman, and male rhino Kertam, are being cared for by non-governmental organisation Borneo Rhino Alliance, at the Borneo Rhino Sanctuary in the Tabin Wildlife Reserve in Lahad Datu.
By Avila Geraldine
KOTA KINABALU: Puntung, one of Malaysia's last surviving Sumatran rhinos, is now at death's door.
The female rhino has been diagnosed with squamous cell cancer, which has been spreading rapidly over the last few weeks.
Specialists from various countries have all delivered the same devastating verdict: with or without treatment, the cancer will be fatal for the 25-year-old rhino.
Sabah Wildlife Department director Augustine Tuuga, announcing this, said that as of today, Puntung can no longer breathe through her left nostril.
"She can also no longer vocalise. She is in pain and her condition is declining fast.
"Other than administering painkillers, there is nothing more anyone can do," he said.
Tuuga said the department has been left with little choice but to make a very difficult decision.
"We are left with no other recourse except to agree with professional medical advice and accordingly, we have authorised euthanasia."
"This was a very difficult decision to make, but the specialists agree that on balance, this is the best out of a very small number of unpleasant choices," he said.
The euthanasia will be done on June 15.
In April, Puntung underwent an operation to extract two molars and a premolar from the upper left side of her jaw, which had been causing severe abscess.
The surgery was performed by veterinary dentist Dr Tum Chinkangsadarn from Thailand, who found that the source of the abscess was a formation caused by an accumulation of bacteria on the severely-calcified molars.
The calcification also loosened two adjacent teeth.
Tuuga said it turned out that the swelling on Puntung’s left cheek that alerted them to the infected tooth root had a more serious origin.
"After the surgery, the swelling progressed, and two subsequKOTA KINABALU: The Sabah Wildlife Department is not in the mood to celebrate just yet, although its critically-ill Sumatran rhino, Puntung, is showing signs of improvement.
Puntung, one of only three Sumatran rhinos left in Malaysia, had suffered from a potentially dangerous abscess on her upper jaw two weeks ago.
Her condition reportedly showed signs of improvement over the weekend.
Sabah Wildlife Department director Augustine Tuuga said Puntung had shown worsening symptoms of loss of appetite, intermittent bleeding from her left nostril and very passive behaviour on Thursday and Friday.
“Normally, she wo consume about 30 kilograms of fresh leaves and twigs daily.
“She ate very little over those two days, and spent most of the daytime lethargic in her wallow,” he said in a statement, adding that they had thought there was no hope left when intermittent bleeding was spotted on her left nostril.
On Saturday, Puntung became more active and the bleeding also stopped.
Augustine, however, said the department remains cautious on her condition despite the recovery signs.
The abscess poses grave concerns as the infection could cause sepsis and eventually death.
The loss of Puntung, would prove to be a catastrophic loss to the future of the species as at 25-years-old, she still has a few years of egg production left to be used for in-vitro fertilisation.
Puntung, along with female rhino, Iman, and male, Kertam, are being cared for by non-governmental organisation Borneo Rhino Alliance (Bora) at the Borneo Rhino Sanctuary in Tabin Wildlife Reserve, Lahad Datu.
Bora Executive Director Datuk Dr John Payne said a combination of constant attention, antibiotics, fruits and various supplements may have turned Puntung's situation around.
Meanwhile, the sanctuary's manager and veterinarian Dr Zainal Zainuddin said Puntung’s stubborn nature had made their job of treating her more difficult.
“We have been trying to take an X-ray for the past four days but she is irritated not only by pain but by our attention, not least the injections.
“We are in frequent contact with specialist rhino veterinary surgeons in South Africa, but they need to see the radiograph before we can decide how to proceed.”ent biopsies revealed squamous cell carcinoma," explained Tuuga.
Sabah is home to only three out of the last few critically-endangered Sumatran rhinos. The remaining numbers are in Indonesia.
Puntung, another female rhino Iman, and male Kertam, are being cared by a non-governmental organisation, Borneo Rhino Alliance, at the Borneo Rhino Sanctuary in the Tabin Wildlife Reserve in Lahad Datu.
Puntung was captured in 2011. It was subsequently established that she was the last remaining wild rhino in the Reserve.
The loss of Puntung would prove to be a catastrophic loss to the future of the species as at 25-years-old, she still has a few years of egg production left to be used for in-vitro fertilisation.
April 8, 2017- Dire straits: Malaysia could lose Puntung, one of its three Sumatran rhinos.
KOTA KINABALU: Rescuers have resorted to handfeeding Puntung, one of the last remaining Sumatran rhinoceros, as it has shown no signs of recovery.
It was reported on Wednesday that Puntung has an abscess inside her upper jaw and she was not responding to antibiotic treatment.
Sabah Wildlife department director Augustine Tuuga said the mammal has been sick the past week, and spends most of the time wallowing. She has not been eating much in the past few days.
“When Puntung leaves her wallow at night, she will be handfed with some browse, bananas and mangoes in the forest paddock, up to midnight.
“The veterinarian said she was more perky today but only ate 5kg of browse last night,” he said when contacted today, adding that average daily consumption of browse should be around 15kg but in this instance, even 5kg of browse is fine as it will be able to sustain Puntung for about 38 hours.
Puntung, along with another female rhinoceros, Iman, and a male rhino, Kertam, are being cared for by the Borneo Rhino Alliance at the Borneo Rhino Sanctuary in the Tabin Wildlife Reserve, Lahad Datu.
The team had also initially plan to conduct an x-ray scan on Puntung’s wound but this could only be done if she was in her enclosure. As she has taken to spending her time wallowing, the team can only wait.
They had also spotted intermittent bleeding on her left nostril yesterday. Her infection is believed to be deep and could spread further, which might lead to sepsis and eventually death.
Augustine added they have been in constant communication with experts experienced in managing dental and facial damage for rhinos to discuss on the best course of treatment for Puntung.
“Augmentin (a type of antibiotic) treatment and dextrose fluid are still continued besides supplements being added in her food.
“Other types of antibiotic such as Amoxyclav and Enroflaxacin were discussed as an alternative but we are concerned about the lack of studies on the effects of these drugs on rhinos.”
Puntung’s condition is a grave concern for many as she is one of the last rhinos in Malaysia. In Indonesia, only a handful of Sumatran rhinoceros are left.
April 7, 2017- Puntung not showing signs of recovery
By Olivia Miwil
KOTA KINABALU: Puntung, one of the last remaining Sumatran Rhinos in Malaysia, is in pain and spend most of her time in wallow pond.
Sabah Wildlife director Augustine Tuuga said the critically-ill mammal has an abscess inside her upper jaw did not show any sign of recovery.
“She has been sick since last week and does not eat much, perhaps suffering from pain.
“Puntung also stays at the wallow and seldom goes back to her paddock,” he said when contacted.
Puntung, another female rhino Iman and male Kertam are being cared by a non-governmental organisation, Borneo Rhino Alliance, at the Borneo Rhino Sanctuary in the Tabin Wildlife Reserve in Lahad Datu.
Augustine added antibiotic had been administered but the inflamed wound did not heal and the department was worried the infection could lead to sepsis and eventually death.
“The plan is to bring her for an X-ray tomorrow (today) or the day after (tomorrow) and plan the next course of action after the scan.
“For now, veterinarians have yet to ascertain source or type of infection but we hope it is not contagious,” he said.
On Iman and Kertam, who are also at the area, both are well.
Sabah is home to only three out of the last few critically-endangered Sumatran rhino. The remaining less than 100 rhinos are in Indonesia.
Puntung, who was captured in 2011 had its front left foot torn off in a hunter’s snare trap when she was an infant.
An effort to get Puntung conceived manually with Kertam became futile as she could not get pregnant due to cysts lining the uterus.
Since 2014, with the capture of Iman from Danum valley, efforts have been directed towards trying to create rhino embryos through in-vitro fertilisation.
Iman, despite being diagnosed with severe fibroids in the uterus, can still produce eggs.
Over a period of two and a half year, 15 eggs have been obtained from Iman and Puntungwhile the sperms obtained from Kertam are kept be freezing them with liquid nitrogen pending for the fertilisation.
If successful, the fertilised eggs will be inserted into surrogate mother rhinos of the same species in Sumatra.
Augustine added experts from Germany, Indonesia and in the country were in constant contact to make the fertilisation happen.
Meanwhile, Borneo Rhino Alliance executive director Datuk John Payne said the life expectancy of the species could reach up to 35 years.
"We estimate that Puntung is around 25 years old. Her loss would be a tragedy because she potentially has quite a few years of egg production left."
April 5, 2017 - One of last remaining Sumatran Rhinos in Sabah critically ill.
KOTA KINABALU: One of the last remaining Sumatran Rhinos in Malaysia is critically ill.
Sabah Wildlife Department director Augustine Tuuga said the rhinoceros, named Puntung, has an abscess inside her upper jaw and not responding to antibiotic treatment.
“It is a grave concern because there are signs that the infection is deep and likely has spread even deeper.
"We are worried about sepsis, an infection complication that can spread quickly through the body and rapidly cause death," he said in a statement, adding that Puntung had been sick since last week.
Sabah is home to only three out of the last few critically-endangered Sumatran rhino. The remaining numbers are in Indonesia.
Puntung, another female rhino Iman and male Kertam are being cared by a non-governmental organisation, Borneo Rhino Alliance, at the Borneo Rhino Sanctuary in the Tabin Wildlife Reserve in Lahad Datu.
Puntung was captured in 2011. It was subsequently established that she was the last remaining wild rhino in the Reserve.
The department had tried to mate Puntung and Kertam in a managed and fenced facility. However, it was later found that Puntung’s uterus was lined with a severe array of cysts which was untreatable.
Since 2014, with the capture of Iman from Danum valley, efforts have been directed towards trying to create rhino embryos through in-vitro fertilisation.
If successful, the fertilised embryos will be inserted into surrogate mother rhinos of the same species in Sumatra.
Borneo Rhino Alliance executive director Datuk John Payne said the life expectancy of the species could reach up to 35 years.
"We estimate that Puntung is around 25 years old. Her loss would be a tragedy because she potentially has quite a few years of egg production left."
Additional related stories
Comments
Post a Comment