Captive bushbaby with painful eye condition surrendered to wildlife hospital

A member of the public who had a lesser bushbaby as a pet surrendered the animal to the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital after it developed a painful eye condition.

Following a consult with veterinary eye specialist, Dr Lo-An Odayer, she was diagnosed with entropion – a condition in which the eyelid rolls inward and causes the surrounding eyelashes and hair to scratch the surface of the eye.

‘This is not only very painful (like having sand in your eye), but can cause ulceration of the cornea and can, in chronic cases, lead to vision loss. While under general aneasthetic, Dr Kelsey placed tacking sutures which help pull the eyelid back out into normal position, and then hold it into place to allow for the eye to heal and inflammation to improve,’ the hospital said on Facebook.

Dr Lourens performed microsurgery on this 280g primate. ‘The surgery was a success and just 24 hours later one can hardly see where the small cut was made.’

Once her eye has healed, she will be introduced to other bushbabies and will enter a slow-release process which will ensure that she has the best chance at survival and living freely.

Pictures: Dr Karin Lourens & Anne Prestel