Dehorning has historically been used widely in Southern Africa to reduce the risks of poaching on both black and white rhino. Much experience has been gained on the techniques, impacts on behavior of rhinos and the impact of dehorning on the risk of rhinos. Veterinary, operational and management aspects of dehorning and its effectiveness as a deterrent to poaching is evident.
The main objective of this dehorning exercise is simply to remove the lure, temptation or incentive for poachers to enter the reserve and shoot a rhino to obtain the horn illegally. After a dehorning is carried out, rhino horns grow rapidly, they need to be trimmed after 12-18 months. Africa Foundation and the Phinda team are planning on dehorning x10 Rhinos per year and are actively raising funds to sustain this conservation work to deter poachers from killing rhinos for their horns.