Story highlights Dvůr Králove Zoo does not want the killing of a 4-year-old rhino, Vince, in Paris repeated

The risk of poachers is so worrying that the zoo began dehorning procedures Monday

(CNN) A zoo in the Czech Republic has begun removing the horns of all its rhinos, saying it is better to leave the animals with stumps than risk them being killed by poachers.

The move comes in response to an attack two weeks ago on Vince , a 4-year-old Southern white rhino, at Thoiry Zoo in Paris. Vince was shot dead by poachers who sawed off one of his horns with a chainsaw.

Fearing more attacks, Dvůr Králove Zoo in the northern Czech Republic will remove the horns of its 21 rhinoceroses, officials there said.

Pamir, a Southern white rhino, on Monday became the first to lose his horn in a procedure carried out by a veterinarian under anesthetic.

Zoo director Jan Stejskal watched the operation on Pamir, and told CNN he found it tough emotionally.

The decision to remove the horn was difficult and sad, Jan Stejskal, director of international projects at the zoo, told CNN.

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