The three-year-old boy who was “thrown into a crocodile pit” has returned home after a long recovery period in hospital.
He was seriously injured in the incident and has undergone a serious of surgeries, with his family saying he uses “his feet in play”.
The toddler returned home from Addenbrooke’s Hospital a few weeks ago and is “happy to be home, playing with his toys, sleeping in his own bed and being a big brother”, his parents wrote yesterday.
They thanked the hospital staff “who were involved in our son’s care including the supply of superhero costumes to brighten up his day”.
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It is understood the boy, who has not been named, has undergone seven operations following the incident, including a nerve graft to regain control of his left hand.
His grandmother shared the boy’s most recent operation involved doctors replaced a damaged nerve in his arm, with one from his leg.
He sustained a broken arm and pelvis after “being thrown into” the crocodile enclosure while on a visit with his mother and younger sibling on June 18.
In a post online on July 15, his parents wrote: “Tomorrow marks four weeks of being in the hospital.
“Shortly after we arrived on the 18th of June, our son underwent a 12 hour surgery where the surgeons performed miraculous things, they were faced with tendon damage, nerve damage, blood vessel damage, broken bones and severe tissue damage in both his arms, neck, head and face.
“Those were the worst 12 hours of our lives as before that we were signing consent forms involving resuscitation and amputation.
“We were unsure if our son was going to make it and that was the worst feeling in the world.
“Four weeks later and the cheeky little boy that we love so much is talking to the nurses, playing using his feet and smiling again.
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“We are amazed at how far he has come.”
On June 18, the zoo was “alerted to reports that a child had allegedly been thrown into of our crocodile enclosures”, it said in a social media post.
At around 1.30pm, emergency services were called and the boy was rushed to hospital.
A 30-year-old man from Norfolk was arrested in connection with the incident, but was later bailed as a he was “not fit for police interview”.
The suspect, it is understood, has learning difficulties and had been on a trip with carers when the incident happened.
A GoFundMe page was set-up by the boy’s grandmother to give the family “financial stability” and “support their son’s further recovery and rehabilitation”.
The page has raised almost £115,000.
In a post on the page yesterday, the boy’s parents said the money has been used to cover mortgage payments and bills, also covering loss of wages as they were caring for their injured son.
They said they have also used the money to purchase new toys for the paediatric intensive care unit at the Cambridgeshire hospital and the children’s play team on the ward, to which their son was “very fond of”.
The boy’s parents said the play team “helped him be a little three year old boy by inventing new games and teaching him new ways to use his feet in play”.
Money has also been donated to the the sick children’s trust, a charity which supports families with children who are long-term patients or in the intensive care unit by providing them with accommodation on site, the post said.
The parents also said they want to donate to the Addenbrooke’s charitable trust, as a way of saying “thank you to all the staff who were involved in our son’s care”.
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