How do you give a 2,300 pound rhino with a blocked nose a CT scan?

A 2,300 pound rhinoceros has become the first in its species to undergo a computerised tomography (CT) scan after a huge operation in a Chicago zoo.

Layla, a seven and a half year old black rhino, had a blockage in her nasal passageway that made it difficult for her to breathe and vets at Brookfield Zoo needed to take a closer look.

She was too big to move inside the zoo's hospital so zoo officials had to arrange for a CT scanner to be brought to the rhino enclosure at Pachyderm House.

Due to the size and weight of the beast a digger had to be used to lift her onto the scanner.

About 40 members of staff, who did practice runs with 2,300 pounds of concrete, were needed to help.

Veterinarians found "abnormal" tissue inside her nasal passageway and now are developing a plan for a surgery to remove it.