Stevie pictured here was only a few months old when he and his mother were grabbed from their wilderness home and stuffed into a cardboard box to be shuffled hand to hand before fetching the highest price. Stevie’s mother died slowly from starvation and stress while nursing her pup in that box, keeping him alive just long enough to be rescued during an intelligence driven sting operation. His mother who would have been wrapped tightly around him, had been replaced with a few cabbage leaves.

These traumatised, emaciated and dehydrated pangolins arrive at the Johannesburg Wildlife Vet where no effort is spared. They are examined, stabilised and admitted for blood work and a CT scan at a nearby specialist hospital. Then the long road to recovery and release begins. This process is far longer for the young pups who need to be bottle fed throughout the day and night before starting their daily walks to learn how to forage. This 24hr job, spanning many months, takes immense expertise and dedication.