A book by students of the Wildlife Medicine Clinic at Jeonbuk National University (JBNU) College of Veterinary Medicine, which records their intense wildlife rescue logs and reflections on the meaning of life, titled 'Wildlife Hospital 24 Hours', has attracted significant attention. It was selected last week by Aladin, the country's largest online bookstore, as a new science bestseller immediately after publication.

Published through the IF-RDP Program, a student authorship support program recognized this year as an exemplary case under the Ministry of Education's Education Capacity Enhancement Project, the book is filled with sad yet beautiful stories of wild animals injured by humans — poaching, snares, roadkill, heavy metal poisoning — and then returned to the wild by human intervention.

'If only we could, we wanted to prevent another similar death. The main causes of injury to wildlife are man-made: roads, poaching, lead sinkers used for fishing, river maintenance, and glass windows on buildings. The wild animals we encountered were all beautiful and special; they should not have perished from traffic accidents on roads, been shot by poachers, eaten rice contaminated with pesticides, or swallowed lead sinkers.' — Excerpt

The stories of the animals brought to the wildlife hospital are all heartrending. One thing they have in common is that each animal was injured by humans or lost its habitat because of humans. In treating and returning those wild animals to the wild, JBNU College of Veterinary Medicine students learn many lessons about the meaning of life.

The hands of the veterinarians at the wildlife hospital are warm but sometimes cold. They do their utmost to treat the animals, but after recovery they train them sternly to restore their wild instincts.

The hospital treats many animal patients — Korean water deer and leopard cats with spinal injuries from roadkill, eagles shot by poachers, swans suffering lead poisoning from discarded fishing sinkers — but not all of them return to the wild.

Some die before treatment can be administered, and if an animal cannot feed itself and survive in the wild, humane euthanasia is performed. When a wild animal that has become accustomed to being fed is judged unable to survive on its own in nature and euthanasia is considered, even novice veterinarians' hearts ache.

Still, the veterinarians at the wildlife hospital derive their greatest reward from seeing animals kick off their transport cages and safely return to nature. The book conveys this elation and the occasional sense of frustration.

The authors convey through the book that every wild animal they met in the hospital was beautiful and special. The book fully records the urgent daily life of the wildlife hospital, a final bastion like a field hospital, that protects those special and beautiful lives.