IamDanielTham

Why do the orphans each have their own "room" at night? First, the reassuring part: a room of one's own doesn't mean sleeping alone. The orphans bed down on soft hay, surrounded by the comforting rumbles of the others, with a Keeper right beside them throughout the night. Neighbours often rumble to one another through the walls before settling down for sleep. As for the separate rooms themselves, there's one main reason: they allow the Keepers to provide one-to-one care, feed each orphan during the night and closely monitor how much every individual is eating and how they're doing. Each orphan has its own cosy, secure space – close to the herd, but a space of its own. As they grow older and need a little less support at night, they graduate to communal stockades, where they can enjoy the company of one another while also encountering nocturnal wild visitors that wander through.

Do our baby elephants sleep through the night? Spare a thought for the Keepers… Our youngest orphans are fast asleep on their hay-lined mattresses by early evening – but a good night’s unbroken sleep isn’t on the cards, for them or for their Keepers. The smallest orphans need milk every three hours, around the clock, which means a Keeper is awake in the small hours, feeding and settling each orphan back down. Some babies grow so attuned to the routine that they reach a trunk over to their Keeper’s bunk when they hear milk being prepared, impatient for their turn. Those three-hourly feeds add up, and milk is one of the biggest costs of raising an orphan. You can help cover it through our wishlist: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/s…

Just like human babies, newborn rhino calf Chamboi needed naps too. He was rescued as a newborn in September 2023 – found alone by rangers near a waterhole in Tsavo West at barely a day old, his mother nowhere to be found. We brought him to Kaluku, so he could grow up and reintegrate back into the same ecosystem he was rescued from. Fun fact: he used to squeak constantly for reassurance and comfort, but today - he's a teenager full of confidence, on a journey back to the wild! Around 6,788 black rhino remain in the wild, so every animal saved (and rewilded) counts. Become a part of his story by adopting him, and your adoption can help fund his milk, care and Keepers: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/o…

Misheck can’t even take a tea break without Wangalla glued to his side! Our long-serving Keeper is a real favourite with some of our youngest orphans, and it’s because of him that Wangalla is alive today. When the tiny infant struggled with teething, Misheck would pull his chair outside her stable, armed with a bushel of fresh greens, and pluck every leaf off the branches one by one, selecting only the best. In the fullness of time, Wangalla’s journey will take her back to the wilds of Tsavo East, where her story began. For now, you can be part of it through an adoption, for yourself or as a gift for someone special: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/o…

A two-hour flight, mud like quicksand and a trapped mum and baby. This is elephant conservation in action: emergency response for nature’s giants. When friends far up in Samburu called us for help, we knew we had to act. We have unique expertise in this kind of rescue: last year alone, our Aerial Unit helped extract 17 elephants from similar predicaments. Our pilot loaded one of our fixed-wing aircraft with our custom elephant straps and flew north. This was the scene that greeted him: an adult and calf stuck fast in drying mud. Together with personnel from Ol Malo, Loisaba Conservancy and the Kenya Wildlife Service, we worked the straps around the elephants. First came the calf, who was easier to haul out, then the adult, who proved a much greater challenge. Mission complete, both elephants slowly got their bearings and walked off. It’s the height of the dry season, and times are difficult across the country. When Kenya’s elephants need us, wherever they may be, we will answer the call. Your donations make it possible: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/d…

Poppi used to get her milk from her mum. Now a bottle does the trick. Her mother was a matriarch of Amboseli. When she died of natural causes, Poppi couldn’t have survived without milk, so when the Kenya Wildlife Service rescued her, the mantle fell to us to keep her appetite sated. Although she had already spent her first year in the wild, she settled quickly into our care, and her voracious appetite soon became clear. So much so that we have increased her portion! Discover Poppi’s story, from the Nursery to her eventual return to the wild, and help fund the care of orphans like her through an adoption: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/o…

Only hours old, and already meeting her extended family. That includes you! Meet Chili, a tiny wild-born calf. Her mother, Chyulu, is an orphan we rescued, raised and rewilded, and she brought her newborn to our Ithumba Unit to meet the people who raised her. Chili is the 96th calf born to our ex-orphans that we know of! This is what your support makes possible. Thank you for being part of Chili’s story, and ours: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org

A sight we’ll never tire of. Our ex-orphans came to visit on Sunday, and Nesheshi had the honour of leading the herd. Hers was one of our most challenging rescues. After her mother was shot and killed, she very nearly wasted away, and reaching her meant airlifting her in a customised sling beneath our helicopter from a remote corner of Laikipia. This video is why we moved heaven and earth to save her: we could give her the family and support she needed to survive and return to the wild. And she has. Discover her story: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/o…

Watch out, Amali – Latika is keen to take your mantle as top nanny! Latika, our girl with the short trunk and big heart, is really starting to shine. She only graduated to Umani in December and, being a shy elephant, took time to find her place in the herd. Now she is one of the family, loving her new nannying duties. She has a soft spot for Lenny – and the lovable little rogue is certainly putting her through her paces! It’s a miracle Latika is with us at all. She was rescued with a snare wrapped tightly around her neck and struggled with poor health for a long time. Now she is thriving at our Umani Springs Reintegration Unit. Discover Latika’s story and support her through an adoption: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/o…

What does a happy elephant sound like? Turn up the volume and find out. Elephants put the ‘happy’ in reunion. Wild herds erupt into joyous trumpets and trunk hugs when a long-absent loved one returns, and our orphans do the same. When Keeper Joseph came back from leave, Kaikai and Bungalu were beyond elated, greeting him with rumbles and trunk hugs. Both calves lost their mothers, and little Bungalu even survived a lion attack. Raised by Keepers like Joseph, they will one day reclaim their place in the wild. Discover their rescue stories and support their journeys by adopting: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/o…

We always knew there was a quiet, cheeky side to Daba, just waiting to blossom. Hide-and-seek, wrestling, and games of chase put him in the spotlight of our Keepers’ Diaries last month – and not always for good behaviour! This time, Mzinga photobombed him and took the wind out of his sails, and he slunk off to find mischief elsewhere. At 20 months old, Daba is the youngest bull being cared for at our Nairobi Nursery. His story with us began with a routine morning training patrol, when our Canine Unit tracked a small calf wandering by himself. By evening, he was alone no more, rescued and receiving intensive care from our Keepers: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/o…

African wild dogs view raising pups as a community effort. While it’s the dominant female that gives birth, the rest of the pack takes on babysitting duties or stands sentry outside. Once pups are old enough to venture into the wider world, they are communally and lovingly raised to adulthood by the pack. All being well, they can live upwards of 10 years. We believe protecting these incredible animals is a team effort too. Our Air Wing and SWT/KWS Anti-Poaching Teams patrol tirelessly to keep their habitat safe from human threats, and should a pack member need it, veterinary help can be immediately mobilised. You play a part too – donations help fund these vital projects to protect entire landscapes and endangered species. Learn more about our work: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org

The table is set, the guests have arrived, and dinner is served. Most evenings, Max hosts a party of pigs and assorted hangers-on. These wild warthogs have taken up residence around the Nairobi Nursery and come and go from Maxwell’s stockade as they please – sometimes with his blessing, other times much to his chagrin. Maxwell is a unique orphan: he is blind, due to a congenital eye condition. We rescued him as an infant back in 2007, after our Keepers found him lost and crying in the forest. Because a blind rhino would not be able to survive in the wild, Max has a forever home with us. Our ‘Nursery patriarch’ is a much-loved member of the family. To learn more about Max and support him through an adoption, visit: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/o…

Yesterday evening, the best kind of elephant rescue unfolded – one that ended with a little life saved and a wild family kept together. A young calf was found flailing inside a septic tank, trapped and unable to free herself. Keepers from our nearby Voi Reintegration Unit raced to the scene, alongside the SWT/KWS Tsavo Mobile Vet Unit. Together, they filled the tank with water, slowly floating her up to a level where she could be lifted onto solid ground. It was the moment her mother had been waiting for. The herd had remained in the area, panicky but clearly not yet giving up hope. The reunion at the end speaks for itself – sound up to hear the trumpets of joy! It isn’t always possible to reunite a trapped calf with her family. Often, by the time a calf is discovered, many hours have passed and the herd has been forced to move on. Whether it’s a rescue or a reunion, our team will be there, and we’ll make sure this tank is covered so it can’t happen again. Discover how donations are saving wild lives in the field every day: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org

Is Wangalla nudging Keeper Misheck along because it’s nearly milk time, or just eager for a nuzzle? We’ll let you decide. It’s fair to say she is obsessed with her Keepers. When they gather for tea in the evening, she pops into her stable, grabs a branch or two to munch on while they have their chai, and bimbles around the terraces from one Keeper to the next until bedtime. The adoration cuts both ways. Misheck, for one, refused to leave her side for a full five months after she was rescued. Discover her story in full: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/o…

After eight months away roaming wild in Tsavo, baby Sia and her mum, ex-orphan Sagala, stopped by our Voi Reintegration Unit with their herd. Sia started a game of peekaboo and Keeper Walter, like the proud grandfather he is, obliged. Every baby elephant is precious but, to us, Sia is doubly so: she is the offspring of two orphans we rescued and reintegrated into the wild and one of 95 calves we know of thanks to our Orphans’ Project. Meet the rest: sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/o…