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Endangered animals
Preserving Precious Animals From Extinction
Daily Magic: 2 August 2024
Bruce wrote about the time we went to the LA Zoo and fed and petted “Rhonda” the rhino. It turns out her name was actually Randa, but if you heard it, you’d say “Rhonda” too. Randa was an Indian rhino, and there are about 4,000 of them left in the world in the wild and in zoos.
Rhonda (Randa) the Rhinoceros
By Bruce White
Amy and I headed to the Los Angeles Zoo one sunny California morning. I had never been there and was excited to see all the wonderful animals. As we entered the gates, the first thing I saw were groups of children petting goats and other farm animals. We passed through the aviary and the animals of South America where I heard someone talking about petting the rhinoceros.
Now that was something Amy and I had never done before. I found out where we could get tickets and we were off.
“Oh, you’re lucky. These are the last two tickets to see Rhonda today,” said the lady in the booth. Rhonda, or Randa (the African spelling) was the oldest living Indian rhinoceros in captivity at 47 years of age. Visitors like ourselves could sign up for a 30 minute session with other visitors spending time with Rhonda, petting and feeding her. Rhonda had come to the Los Angeles Zoo from a zoo in Texas in 1974. She had skin cancer under her horn which was removed in order to treat it. Rhonda was now a healthy but elderly girl who still enjoyed being petted and fed by visitors.
Our appointment with Rhonda was in the late afternoon so we had plenty of time to wander through the other exhibits. Reggie the alligator was sunning himself on his favorite rock and smiling at us. I’m sure Reggie would have liked to get to know us more intimately. The flamingos were a beautiful pink but their odor was something only another flamingo could love. The LAIR features all the creepy crawlies you don’t want to wake up next to. Snakes, scorpions, tarantulas, lizards, frogs, salamanders and so many others fill these two large buildings. We watched the four Asian elephants playing in their huge habitat looking for treats their trainers may have hidden in their massive toys.
