Source : Perth Now news
The three-year-old allegedly thrown into a crocodile enclosure has “a long journey ahead” and a lot of “uncertainty” remains, his family say.
The incident occurred on June 18 at Johnsons of Old Hurst, a zoo located in Huntingdon, about 100 kilometres north of London.
The child was allegedly picked up and “thrown” into an animal enclosure by a man not known to him.
Cambridgeshire Police attended the zoo in Huntingdon around 1pm to find he was attacked by at least one crocodile, according to the BBC
Zoo staff removed the boy from the crocodile pen and he was given medical treatment at the scene before being rushed to hospital with serious injuries, where he remains.
On Thursday, the child’s family issued a statement saying that he had had his sixth surgery on Tuesday, which was a success, but there would be “a long journey ahead”.
“A week ago, the surgeons had to do a skin graft in two places on his left arm. In this weeks surgery they confirmed that the grafts had taken and they were starting to heal,” they said.
“They were also able to look at all of his external wounds and are happy with the way that they are healing.
“However, when celebrating the little wins we know there is still a long way to go.
“Although the external wounds are healing nicely, the nerve and tendon damage still brings uncertainty.
“Currently he has little movement in three of his left fingers and no movement in his right fingers.
“We spoke to the surgeons today and his nerves will take months to heal and recover before we are even able to tell what function he truly has.”
The family called the three-year-old a “little superhero” who has been “so brave and resilient” in the three weeks since the horrific incident.
They added that a young girl and her grandmother sent a super hero costume for their boy.
Hospital staff were also praised for making the three-year-old smile by dressing up as superheroes.
“This has been a relief for us to see – our boy being happy again.”
The statement was shared on a GoFundMe page which was established for the family by the boy’s grandmother, Lucy Lockett.
Since being established on June 30, it has raised more than £62,000 ($A119,823).
Funds raised from the GoFundMe will go towards supporting the toddler’s recovery and provide financial stability for the family, with excess money being donated to the Addebrooke’s Trust to help families at the same hospital facing similar challenges.
In a statement last week, the family said they were “extremely grateful for everyone’s generosity” when it came to donations.
“The money that has been donated so far has been used to pay for our expenses,” they said.
“We are both currently away from work, and the time in which this will need to be the case is unknown.
“We have a newborn baby to look after, a mortgage to pay for and other expenses, including our car, food and bills.
“The donations have helped ease the pressure of these expenses so we are extremely grateful to everyone.
“Further donations will be used to support our son’s rehabilitation and to give back to the hospital who have helped us in many ways during this challenging time.”
Police arrested a 30-year-old British man on suspicion of attempted murder soon after the incident.
The man, reported to have learning disabilities, was released on bail after being deemed unfit for interview by the police.
Police said they believed the man was not known to the child and he was visiting the zoo with carers.
A safeguarding inquiry into his level of care is now underway.
