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The ivory trade is one of the world’s oldest, cruelest, and most inhumane types of trade. Every year thousands of animals are killed for their ivory tusks, with elephants being slaughtered at alarming rates and suffering the most from it. Poachers have decimated herds and wild elephant numbers are steadily declining.
One woman, Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick, saw this happening in her own back yard. Along with her husband she was the co-warden of the Tsavo National Park in Kenya and when he passed away in 1977, she started the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (DSWT). Her goal was to help rescue and save as many orphaned elephants as she possibly could, and she succeeded, today it’s the most successful orphan rehabilitation program on the planet.
Orphaned baby elephants are notoriously hard to care for. To survive they require constant, specialized care and a certain type of milk formula that contains coconut oil, which Daphne found only after trying every possible milk source she could get her hands on. When she did finally find the proper type of milk that the elephants, and rhinos, could tolerate and thrive off of, it was the breakthrough she’d been looking for and made her work possible.
When a newly orphaned baby elephant arrives at the sanctuary they are under deep emotional and physical distress. Some are injured and all are scarred after seeing their mothers and possibly other family members slaughtered by poachers for nothing more than their ivory tusks. They are not caged or penned in, instead they’re allowed to roam freely.
Each one is assigned their own handler who is like a surrogate mother, they take care of any and all needs the baby elephant might have. They feed them, watch their health closely, play, and snuggle together. All of this is done with the goal of returning the elephant back into the wild, healthy and ready for the life it deserves.
Daphne was a leading voice in the fight against poaching and ending the ivory trade. She saw firsthand the devastating effects it had on not only the elephants, but also the rhinos who are now facing extinction. Her foundation has helped hundreds of elephants survive and return to the wild.
The saying “an elephant never forgets” is true in Daphne’s case because they never forgot her. Over the years many came back to visit and bring their families to see her. They would line up to hug her and show their appreciation, and that alone made it all worth it to her.
Watch the video below for the full story:
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