The end of May was quite rough here at DAKTARI.
Those of you who came to volunteer with us in the last couple of years will definitely know Lily.
She’s a duiker that was raised here and then released on our reserve. Every few days she still came into the camp to get some birdseed.
A few days ago volunteer Beth spotted Lily behind one of our cars with a big wound on her back. We brought her in to examine her and saw that she was in a very bad state. What followed in the next few days was a lot of cleaning out of the wound, making sure Lily wasn’t in pain and treating her the best we could.
The vet decided that the injury was too big for her to recover. Lily had given birth not long ago and we think the baby’s hoofs had gotten caught and caused the injury. Lily suffered from an anal fissure and a respiratory infection.
We’re obviously very sad that Lily passed away, but we are still very grateful for Beth and everyone else that did everything they could to help Lily. Her last few days were very painful, but she felt safe and she received cuddles up until her very last breath.
Farewell, Lily!