Africa-Press – South-Africa. The Kuleni Game Park in KwaZulu-Natal has lambasted reports that they have euthanised their female giraffe after it trampled a toddler to death and injured the child’s mother earlier this week.
In a statement on Wednesday, the chairman of the park’s board of trustees, Brian Ring, said a private resident of the Kuleni Game Park was walking with her two children on the property when they encountered a small herd of giraffes commonly seen in the area.
“As the mother, a qualified guide, and her children walked past the herd, we assume that one of the giraffes attacked the older child before turning on the mother and the younger child. We do not know what caused the giraffes to behave in such an unusual way,” Ring said.
According to Ring, the giraffes, including the mother and calf, moved off into the surrounding bush, unharmed.
“These are residents of our park and a much-loved part of the extended Kuleni family, and we are still reeling from the shock of what has happened,” said Ring.
He said for the past 20 years that the park has been established, thousands of guests and owners have walked the park “without incident.”
News24 understands that both mother and calf are still alive and well. Reports doing the rounds on social media indicated that the mother giraffe was euthanised after the incident, however the board of trustees confirmed that this is not true.
“We would like to thank the broader Hluhluwe community and the first responders and paramedics from Richards Bay and Hluhluwe who did everything they could on the scene, the cause of the accident is being further investigated,” Ring added.
Meanwhile, the National Council of SPCAs (NSPCA) said the loss of life due to animal attack is “devastating and in most [cases] it could’ve been avoided.”
“The NSPA has reiterated time and time again that wild animals belong in the wild and they are not to be interfered with by humans for leisure or entertainment purposes. From what we understand, these giraffes were kept on a game farm where the animals could be accessed and seen up close and in person by visitors.
“The giraffes may have felt threatened but we were not fully informed surrounding the circumstances regarding this unfortunate incident,” the NSPCA said in a statement.
The Kuleni Game Park is home to a collection of luxury bush lodges in the Hluhluwe area.
According to its website, the park hosts individually styled, eco-sensitive and timber structured lodges.
It states visitors can enjoy close encounters with animals while walking or cycling on the numerous trails.
“It is home to an abundance of wildlife and birdlife in a beautiful environment to relax and explore. The original park has now combined with four neighbouring properties to create a greater conservancy.”
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