The family of the three-year-old boy allegedly thrown into a crocodile enclosure at a family-run zoo in Cambridgeshire, England, have shared a new update on their son’s condition as he continues his recovery.
The three-year-old was allegedly picked up by a stranger and thrown into an enclosure housing crocodiles at Johnsons of Old Hurst Zoo last month. He was attacked by one of the reptiles and suffered serious injuries. Following the horrifying incident, the boy was rushed to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in critical condition.
Shortly afterward, the family issued a statement thanking the zoo staff for saving his life. According to BBC News, the statement read: “We would like to thank the staff at the zoo who rescued our son from the enclosure… our attention remains focused on his recovery and supporting him through this extremely challenging and prolonged period of time.”
It continued: “We are truly grateful for the public support and well-wishes we have received, as well as to everyone who has been directly involved in our son’s care and recovery in hospital.”
3-year-old was thrown into crocodile enclosure
A 30-year-old man, believed to have learning difficulties, was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder before being bailed until September 18. Police said he was “assessed as not being fit for interview.”
Now, the young boy’s family have revealed they have been “living at the hospital” for more than two weeks as he continues to receive treatment, according to LADbible.
His parents confirmed their son has already undergone five surgeries and is expected to undergo at least two more. They said it remains unclear how much “feeling, movement and function in both of his arms, wrists and hands” he will regain.
“Our son has undergone 5 surgeries”
In an update posted to their GoFundMe page, the family wrote: “We are extremely grateful for everyone’s generosity. We could never thank you enough for the support you have given our family in this horrible time,” according to LADbible.
“We have been living at the hospital for 2 weeks now and our son has undergone 5 surgeries.
“At this moment in time we know that our son is to undergo at least two more surgeries, one of those surgeries being a nerve reconstruction in his arm.
“These last two weeks have been a very uncertain and unsettling time.
“This uncertainty remains as we still don’t know the extent of his feeling, movement and function in both of his arms, wrists and hands.
“This will only be identified after casts and bandages are able to be removed and he can begin his rehabilitation journey.
“His rehabilitation journey is uncertain but we do know that it won’t be a short process. The money that has been donated so far has been used to pay for our expenses.”
The update continued: “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, 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. Thank you.”
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