Sheldrick Wildlife Trust was founded by Dr Dame Daphne Sheldrick DBE founded in memory of her late husband David Leslie William Sheldrick WBE. Like the late David Sheldrick, the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (SWT) pioneered nature and wildlife conservation in East Africa.
Based in Nairobi, on the edge of Tsavo East National Park, SWT is an organization known for its work protecting some of Africa's most endangered species. The charity's expansion into the UK and US has given SWT even greater reach for education, financial support and outreach on every continent.
In 1948, David Sheldrick began his illustrious career with the Royal National Parks of Kenya, where he worked tirelessly for more than two decades to transform Tsavo, a previously unexplored and inhospitable country, into Kenya's largest and most famous national park. David Sheldrick remains one of Africa's most famous and talented pioneer rangers.
Sheldrick Wildlife Trust
Generations of experience, passion and dedication paved the way for SWT to be what it is today. In more than 45 years, SWT has provided 8,853 veterinary cases for animals in need. This ranges from captive elephants to zebras shot by poachers with poisoned arrows. They have also developed 22 mobile trap detection units in Kenya to help combat the poaching pandemic. However, the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust is best known for its work with orphaned elephants known as Theorphan project.
orphan project
A popular place for tourists during their stay or stopovers in Nairobi is the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust Elephant Farm. To date, Nairobi Nursery has successfully raised 282 orphaned elephants and 17 hand-reared rhinos. SWT's efforts on this project should not be underestimated. Elephant calves are often orphaned when their mothers die from poaching, drought, human conflict, or disease. While some calves may be reintegrated into herds, this relief is only temporary. While the pride provides the protection the young need, the other adult females do not allow the orphaned babies to nurse, as this would deprive their young of nutrition.
Here, SWT successfully rescued orphaned calves. The organization rehabilitates the young until puberty before returning them to the wild. However, the process can be tediously long, excruciating, and sometimes exhausting. In many cases, orphaned elephants require hands-on medical attention. Unfortunately, many arrive at the organization seriously injured or, in some cases, near death.
The Nairobi breeding program offers a second chance at life with the ultimate goal of reintroduction into a wild herd. However, this is not an easy task as successful reintroduction may require approximately 10 years of care. While it may seem like a long time to keep an orphaned animal under care and supervision, this is done to ensure that the reintroduction has the best chance of success. The results of the successful rearing of 282 orphans resulted in 50 babies born to orphaned wild elephants.
How to get involved with the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust
The best way to get involved with the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust is to spread the word, telling others about the work this organization does and the success it has achieved. The other way is by donatingadopt an elephantfor only $50 a year. Your annual donation to one of Kenya's oldest and most respected wildlife conservation organizations ensures they can continue their work for decades to come.
you can also donatedirectly to the organization, buy itOnline store, the findanother way to participatewith some of his partners.
For those who are traveling to Nairobi and are interested in visiting you can find them allWebsite Dating Information.
Our personal experience with SWT
Our conservation work began as a charitable donation to the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust.
After learning about the organization in 2020, we decided to make it our priority to visit Kenya as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the Covid-19 pandemic put these plans on hold until early 2022. However, due to the ongoing pandemic, private tours have been in short supply. We had to pull some strings to get a privatized tour before the doors opened to the public.
What to expect on a private tour
We were able to arrange a private tour at 9am. Upon arrival, we were greeted by a member of the SWT team who escorted us to the area where the orphans would gather for morning feedings. Along the way, we get a detailed lesson on the variety of projects SWT is currently doing. It was fascinating to see how an orphan is raised and cared for until he is ready to be returned to the wild. It can take up to ten years for an orphan to be released into the wild. They usually stay at SWT Nairobi Nursery until they are 4-5 years old. After that, the orphan will be taken to the Tsavo East National Park. This is where the second phase of your journey into nature begins.
After this brief introduction, we spent a few minutes patiently waiting for the orphans. We marveled as the babies made their way out of the forest to their keepers, bottles in hand. As the babies were being fed, our guide pointed out each baby individually and told us her story. From droughts to lion attacks to human conflict, each had their own personal story of how they ended up in SWT's care.
Hands-on experience with baby elephants.
After the babies finished eating, we were able to go downstairs and walk among them. Even for babies, they were quite large and powerful. His skin was dry and hard, but his demeanor was cautiously curious. We watched in amazement as these babies played and interacted around us. They used to come to see us and give us a chance to say hello. During these encounters, we were able to safely touch the elephants on their backs, which was a sobering experience.
We began our relationship with SWT by adopting a young elephant namedKinye. She was found by a safari group in 2018 wandering dangerously close to lions at Ol Kinyei Conservancy. An adult female, believed to be her mother due to signs of lactation, was found dead nearby. She is believed to have died of an illness, leaving Kinyei as an orphaned child. SWT was notified and took immediate action to ensure Kinyei's safety. Fortunately, SWT was able to take care of her to give her a second chance at life.
During our visit to the Nairobi nursery, we had the pleasure of seeing this cheeky little elephant up close and personal. Fortunately, Kinyei was very interested in us. He walked over to where we were and climbed the stone steps to the observation deck. He sniffed at us curiously as he approached a thicket of trees that he intended to graze nearby. It was an absolute delight to have the opportunity to spend so much time with an elephant that we have been following closely for the past two years. His spunky personality was all we read about online and we were so happy to see him blossom.
After our visit to the elephants was over, we were escorted to another part of the property where we got to see the orphans' pens. Each orphan is given their own enclosure where they sleep at night.
There's even a bunk bed for your caretaker to spend the night with the orphan in case the baby is too scared to stay here all night. This level of compassion is what makes SWT so special.
Before ending our visit, we got a look at a 15-year-old blind rhino named Maxwell. He has been cared for by SWT since he was rescued as a one-year-old baby in 2007. It is not clear what happened to his mother, but the SWT team found him wandering aimlessly near his headquarters. . After waiting for his mother to return, it became clear that he would not return. Unfortunately, it was also obvious that Maxwell was blind. Without intervention, he could not have survived the threat of predators in the wild. He will never be able to return to the wild due to his blindness, but he has a lifetime of care and attention at SWT.
Overall impression of the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust
By the end of our visit, we were even more enthusiastic about the work of the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust. It was a great feeling to know that the organization was everything we expected and more. It's hard not to be a part of this after seeing firsthand the work, dedication and passion that goes into caring for all these magnificent animals. The organization is dedicated to protecting the wildlife of East Africa. Through their efforts, they have shown that elephant conservation is at the heart of their work. Their impact on elephant populations will be felt for years to come, but they need continued support.
Each of us can provide the care and resources necessary to increase the number of elephants in the future. Tell a friend, share this post and get involved! Please visit theSite SWTto learn more about the incredible work this organization is doing to conserve, protect and rejuvenate elephant populations.conservationPrograms are vital to conserving Africa's wildlife populations and it's never too late to be part of the solution!