A young woman has paid for top vet care trying to save an injured bee she adopted after finding it in her garden and keeping it as a pet.
Student Sarah Borges, 25, first noticed the carpenter bee struggling to fly near a basil plant in her garden in Goiania, Brazil, last month (June).
Then, when her dad noticed it had an injured wing, she took it in and started to care for the stricken insect, which is about the same size as a bumble bee.
Sarah named it Odete and, for weeks, fed it honey and took her to climb over the flowers in the family garden so it could get fresh nectar.
And the more she cared for Odete, the more the bee seemed to care for her.
Sarah explained: “We created a connection with each other.
“She recognised our voices because when we spoke, her little antennae would stand up, and she would move her head.
“You could feel that she felt comfortable and safe with us.”
But earlier this month (4th July) Sarah noticed some changes in Odete had become restless and stopped eating.
Terrified that she might have overfed her with honey she took the bee to local vet Thiago Augusto for a check up.
Dr Augusto told local media: “We placed her in an incubator, moistened the air by administering saline inhalation, and applied glucose with physiological saline into her body cavity (intracelomatically), which is like injecting it into her little belly.”
Sarah spent a total of BRL 350 (GBP 49) trying to save Odette before, tragically, the bee died after an overnight stay at the clinic.
Dr Augusto told his social media follower: “When the guardian reached out to us, she was giving us a vote of confidence, offering to pay for a consultation and hospitalisation even for such a small being.
“This fills our hearts with joy, not because of the money, but because of the trust and knowing that good people believe in our potential, even for great challenges!
“We must not diminish or belittle the suffering of the animal and the guardian.
“It’s very important for people to know this.”
Odete died on Friday, 5th July, after spending 24 hours in the clinic.
Augusto explained that the insect might have died of natural causes.
He said: “This is an indispensable species for our life, and it’s good that she had the purpose of raising people’s awareness.”
Carpenter bees get their name from their habit of burrowing into wood to make their homes.
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Story By: Simona Kitanovska, Sub-Editor: Simona Kitanovska, Agency: Newsflash
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