Rhino Wears Special Mask to Protect Eyes From Flies
Posted on December 3, 2014
A rhinocerous at the Zoological Center in Tel Aviv wears a special mask to protect its eyes from flies. The AP reports that the mask was designed by Neta Gueta, an Israeli zookeeper. Putting the mask on the rhino does not look like an easy task and a zookeeper can be seen risking injury in the video below to get the mask on the rhino.
Flies can lay eggs in the eyes of rhinos. The maggots can damage the eyes after they hatch and cause an infection. The infection was causing the rhino to try and rub her itchy eye area on tree bark.
Israel21c reports that the mask was modified from one used for horses. Examples of horse fly masks can be seen here on the Dover Saddlery website. The custom mask made by the Israeli zoo requires a special cut-out for the Rhino's horn. The zookeeper told the AP that the rhino, named Tanda, now seems to understand the mask is to help her.
The Huffington Post has some photos of the masked rhino here. Take a look: