Wildlifevets.com offers a wide range of services to the wildlife industry.

1.   Game Capture

Wildlifevets.com specialise in the chemical immobilization of wildlife.  Other capture techniques are also utilized and include mass capture, passive capture, net capture, humane trapping and baiting. This is done with the assistance of our highly trained and dedicated game capture team, and well maintained specialized equipment.

We are well equipped to perform small to large game capture operations. We have holding facilities and also facilitate exports. Our extensive game database could match your requirements. We are equipped to perform rhino translocations. Please contact  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for tailor-made solutions.

The Wildlifevets.com team has been performing game capture operations since 2001 and Dr Raath’s has over 25 years experience in the field. We perform cross boarder operations with Mozambique and have exported many game species to USA and other countries.

2.  Clinical Services

This includes emergency response such as snare removals, treatments, breakouts and rehabilitation. We have mobile equipment to do ultrasound for non-invasive pregnancy diagnosis. Most of the clinical cases involve the removal of snares set by poachers, and treating various injuries. We handle wildlife intoxications and disease testing of various species in breeding projects. We also frequently assist in forensic work of poached animals.

3.  Disease Investigation and Control

Both infectious and non-infectious diseases are investigated and managed to solution. This includes complete laboratory support. We provide solutions that may vary from adaptive management to vaccinations. We work closely with Onderstepoort and some cases have resulted in PhD studies by students.

4.  Contractual Research

Typically this is done by pharmaceutical companies such as Wildlife Pharmaceuticals, but we develop equipment such as implants and GPS telemetry for specific needs. We are contractually bound to Wildlife Pharmaceuticals, a company dedicated to find, develop and register products to enhance the ethical management of wildlife populations.

5.  Training and Information Dissemination

Being strong believers in information dissemination, we run frequent informal courses in related topics, both locally and abroad. We train students in conservation medicine and can create specific courses for your needs, incorporating specialists in the field from our vast international network.

6.  Environmental Consultation

A.  Game Farm or Reserve Planning

Advice offered to prospective land owners, government agencies and new wildlife breeders with respect to type of vegetation, topography, and species of wildlife, management and fencing. This is one of the fields where we network and consult specialists in our consortium. We are associated with ICS, (International Conservation Services); see more at www.ics-consulting.co.za, as well as the technical advisers for the Niassa Game Reserve in Mozambique.

B.  Re-Introduction Preparations and Methods

Once new areas are established, we consult to ascertain the correct methods, sequence and times for the successful establishment of new populations in specific areas.

C.  Early Warning Systems for Disease

We specialize in establishing Early Warning Systems on farms and within wildlife areas to detect problems and disease as early as possible, allowing management programs to be initiated and implemented.

D.  Breeding Project Management

Intensification promotes problems, and we advise (and implement) systems to manage and optimize the breeding of especially rare and endangered species.

E.  Terms of References and Specialized Reports

Our experience and independence allows us to objectively provide TOR's and specialized reports for organizations. In the past this has included the Peace Parks Foundation, Nedbank, International Conservation Services and Wildlife Pharmaceuticals.

F.  Specialist Witnesses for Legal Firms

Our expertise is frequently requested by legal firms such as Weber Wentzel and Bowens to act as Expert Witnesses, for opinions, on site investigations, determinations of fair settlements and witnessing.

7.  Research

A.  Own Research

We strive to constantly improve our service and understand the necessity of research. Therefore we have initiated several small in-house projects where the outcome is always directly applicable to what we do, or how we do it. This may be as inconspicuous as small changes to darts, or changing of immobilization protocols. Our Interns are tasked with these studies and are given the opportunity to publish results.

B.  Collaboration
Wildlifevets.com collaborates with several outside researchers on projects that vary from equipment to determining dosages of new preparations in wildlife. We are currently collaborating with an international group, on finding a new and safe immobilization in hippopotamus and developing new remote drug delivery devices with a company in the United Kingdom.

C.  Contractual Research
Having our own animal holding facilities, we conduct ethically approved research for several companies, specifically in the pharmaceutical realm. Our clients include Intervet and Virbac, and we are currently field testing two products for Wildlife Pharmaceuticals as part of the registration package.

9.  Disease Investigation and Control

Niassa Buffalo Survey

In September 2008 we were asked to assist Dr Rui Branco of Mozambique with a buffalo disease survey, in Niassa Game Reserve in Mozambique. It was a great journey through Africa, 3000 km away from Nelspruit, Mpumalanga. We sampled 30 buffalo in just three days, and radio collared two buffalo cows, assisting in future tracking of the herds. This project was done Pro-Bono by Wildlifevets.com.

Several clients use us purely on a crisis management base, whereby we will be requested to investigate specific disease situations and suggest control and/or management solutions. With the aid of state of the art laboratories and technicians, every disease is traced to its etiological and epidemiological source. Advice and assistance with disease control is a top priority. This has included a Theileria outbreak in roan, huge mortalities in crocodiles due to infected water, feed deficiencies in crocodiles, anthrax outbreaks and kidney stones in wildebeest. We establish Early Warning Systems on our client’s properties and design and even implement Standard Operating Procedures in cases of disease outbreaks. With Post Mortems often being the first step in disease investigation, we have established close ties with the Department of Pathology at Onderstepoort.

10.  Community Projects

After doing a disease survey of a community in Zimbabwe with the Peace Parks Foundation, www.peaceparks.org, we have commenced on a small scale to assist the local state veterinarian in various community projects, which include assistance at dip tanks and vaccination of dogs in rabies campaigns. We have embarked on two projects of our own, still in collaboration with the State Veterinary department, in two separate communities, in close proximity to our practice.

The first is called the Nsikazi Project, where we assist with clinical services and management input to the cattle breeders at the dip tanks in the Nzikazi District. This area is adjacent to the Kruger National Park, and plays an important role in Conservation Medicine at the interface. The second is the Mjajeni Project. The community, through their developers, allocated 600 hectares on the interface with the Kruger Park, to establish a Community Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM). Needless to say we incorporate our students, externs and Interns into the projects we undertake.