The Kenya Wildlife Service-KWS veterinary team at Lake Nakuru national park led by Dr. Titus Kaitho is treating the Rothschild’s giraffe. The animal was confirmed to have a bone tumour. The team administered a palliative treatment of antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs and said they will closely monitor the giraffe.

KWS said on their twitter handle “While it is in able condition to move, feed and water, excising the tumour proved difficult due to the extent of the growth that would cause potentially serious complications.”

However, Kenyans suggested to KWS to check the source of water in Naivasha. One said, "I have heard of rogue flower companies contaminating the ecosystem with their dangerous chemicals before. The animals should also be protected from cancer.”

According to African Wildlife Foundation  unlike the slaughter of elephants and rhinos by poachers, the collapse of Africa’s giraffes has been quiet and overlooked. In only 30 years, continental numbers have plummeted by 40 percent.

Recent population and distribution assessments of some subspecies paint a grim picture. Both Kordofan and Nubian giraffes were just upgraded to a critically endangered status on IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species — altogether only approximately 4,650 mature individuals survive.

The reticulated giraffe, one of Kenya’s signature wildlife species and tourist attractions in the north, has declined steadily and is now considered endangered. Maasai and Rothschild giraffes make up the remainder of Kenya’s total giraffe population, which has declined by up to 67 percent since the 1970s.

Source(s): KWS, African Wildlife Foundation