While we had already made one visit to the David Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage, we had to schedule another. This time as part of the private embassy tour where you get a more hands on experience. I planned to go with our neighbors and the 2 kids (Dada is more of a topography kind of guy than wildlife…) but unfortunately Livi kicked off this week with a fever and cold. She was a little sad, but also realized she was too sick to enjoy herself and had a day home with Dada.
Oscar and I headed out and met some baby elephants up close and personal. This time around, there was no rope, and after the elephants had their milk, the instructions were simply "go and interact with the elephants!" The guides were around to keep an eye out, and steer the "naughty" elephants away. Little Oscar was very cautious at first, and quickly discovered the smallest elephants were just his size. He also took over picture taking for a bit and got the best shot of the day! No zoom needed for these…
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| Simotua was caught in a trap (right front leg) and speared in the head. He was rescued and is doing well! |
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| my favorite pic of the day - love the cautiousness in their body language |
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| Our friend Lumpy - you can see a bump in the middle of his forehead |
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| He was checking out Oscar's shoes. Their trunks were so soft! |
Oscar was nervous around the bigger ones, and was happy to take over camera duty for a bit:
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Other fav of the day!
Beautiful pic by my boy. |
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Baraka, a rescued rhino who was abandoned when he was born because he was blind.
He'll live his life at the sanctuary since he would never survive in the wild. |
This place is truly amazing. They rescue baby elephants that have been orphaned in the wild (for a variety of reasons, including injury, poaching, maternal death, and sometimes they just find the poor babies wandering around by themselves). They bring them to the orphanage and care for them until they're about 4 years old. Then they release them to the wild in Tsavo National Park, the biggest park in Kenya with the largest elephant population. They watch them closely until they are adopted by a new elephant family. Amazingly, they are all eventually adopted by an elephant family.
For more info on all the orphans and the organization:
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