This is the sixth post in our series on the top 10 wildlife conservation challenges and solutions, to provide some quick and easy to read background information to our game Conservation Crisis.
Challenge #6 – Illness and Injury
Much like people do, animals get injuries and illnesses that they need help to recover from. They may be injured by other animals as they fight for dominance of their herd or pride, or they may get tangled in poacher’s traps and injure themselves trying to get free. For some species that have similar DNA to people, such as gorillas, the risk of human diseases being transferred to them is very high and can be devastating as the animals don’t have immunity like we do. For example, even a common cold can be deadly to gorillas.
Solution #6 – Vets
Vets can help animals recover from injuries and illness they contract and they can monitor animals to identify problems early on and help animals before they get too ill. Vets can also help ensure animals breed successfully, either in captive-breeding programmes or by monitoring animals in the wild and ensuring they are safe when they give birth.