Wild animals are unpredictable. You can train them to do things, but they will always remain unpredictable. Even a fluffy pet cat is unpredictable. But at least a fluffy pet cat doesn’t have a horn that can literally pierce your body.

This last weekend saw just such an incident of unpredictability: Chantal Beyer, a 24-year-old student from the West Rand in Jozi is in the intensive care unit of the Krugersdorp Private Clinic because a “rhino’s horn had penetrated [her] chest from behind, on the right, almost exiting through her shoulder and resulting in a collapsed lung and broken ribs.”

You might wonder how and why this happened: Chantal was visiting Aloe Ridge hotel and nature reserve in Muldersdrift with her boyfriend when Alex Richter, the reserve’s owner, stopped a game drive near two rhino. Chantal’s uncle, Thom Peeters, explained that Richter had suggested she should “stand just a little bit closer,” so that she could have a better picture taken with the rhinos.

And then the unpredictable happened. The story goes that Richter used mieliepap to get the rhinos to come closer, and then encouraged the guests to get out of the vehicle to take photographs because it was safe.

At the top of the article you can see a photo that Richter took moments before the incident occurred.

[Source: Beeld]