Why do rhinos have bad eyesight

But the less showbizzy reality is that most white tigers are afflicted with a range of genetic problems, ranging from the milder virtually all have crossed eyes and cleft palates to the more serious kidney problems and spine issues, leading to early death.

The plight of in-bred white tigers became well known when one particularly deformed white tiger called Kenny was rescued at around 2 years old. A breeder had been unable to sell him due to his obvious defects, and had left him in his own filth until he was taken in by a refuge. Kenny died a year ago, a young victim of a skin cancer he may have been left vulnerable to by his cruel genetic inheritance.

In fact, you may see it at your local dog park. Inbreeding in pedigree dogs arises because certain dogs with particularly excellent characteristics considered representative of that breed are then used to father many litters of puppies.

Later some of the resulting puppies will be mated with other dogs having the same father from other litters, leading to in-breeding. Some dog breeds are well known to be prone to high incidences of birth defects related to in-breeding.

For example, Dalmatians often have poor hearing, Boxers are prone to heart disease and many German Shepherds have hip problems. While advocacy groups and breeders are beginning to bring in some new measures to deal with the problem, it is still very widespread. Which is why we want to move on from this depressing topic and leave you with one reason to be cheerful.

Before we gave you a list of rhino species which had gone extinct, with in-breeding partly to blame. Black rhinos are gaining in numbers rapidly in Africa and, learning from research into in-breeding, a new effort is being made to intervene in the fate of the endangered Sumatran rhino. In addition to these forms of communication, rhino droppings are also meaningful. By smelling rhino droppings, rhinos can identify a variety of characteristics about its owner including the sex and approximate age of the rhino.

The location of the droppings also marks territory for different groups of rhino. Rhinos can reach speeds of up to 30 miles per hour. Interestingly, while running their top speed, rhinos run on their toes. All that weight is distributed across a 6 foot tall frame that can reach up to 11 feet in length. Once the mud dries, it provides a layer of protection from both the sun and insects.

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Two African — black and white rhinos — and three Asian — greater one-horned, Sumatran and Javan rhinos. And white rhinos are the largest, weighing up to 3,kg over stone, or well over 3 tonnes! The names of black and white rhinos are misleading — as both are actually grey. Females tend to be more sociable than the more solitary, territorial males. Javan and greater one-horned rhinos only have one horn, whereas all the other rhino species have two horns.

Their horns grow continuously during their lifetime — the white rhino's horn can grow 7cm every year — and the record length is cm long! But this is a precarious place to live. An active volcano is just 50km away.

That's why establishing a safe site for another population of Javan rhinos in Indonesia is a priority. During confrontations, they growl and make 'trumpet calls'.