Who can resist a baby elephant?   With their wrinkly grey skin and wobbly legs with a trunk that flops to and fro because they don't quite yet know how to manage all 40,000 muscles that make their trunk work.    The little squeals they sometimes let out and the boisterous bantering with their herd mates.    

I find them so endearing and I can feel my heart swell with love over ten times when I have the privilege to watch them.

It also feels like my heart is broken into a thousand pieces torn and shredded whenever I hear about an orphaned elephant.   Elephants are very family oriented and to know a family lost a baby and a baby lost its family is absolutely devastating.

That's where Sheldrick Wildlife Trust steps in.    They make the horrible - bearable.   With the blessing of the Kenya Wildlife Service, Sheldricks will rescue an orphaned baby elephant and wisk them away by plane or helicopter usually to the orphanage at Nairobi National Park to give them a new start at life.  

You can see their rescues on their social media feeds on Facebook and Instagram and read the stories on their website.   

At the elephant orphanage, the orphaned elephants get a new family.   A family of other orphans and their human keepers, outfitted in their green trench coats, with always a caring hand and loving words for their charges and a milk bottle every 3 hours.

Yes, and that includes every 3 hours throughout the night.    Each of the babies has its own stockade complete with fresh greens, hay to lay on, water, a blanket, and a keeper.   The keepers are switched often so that the baby doesn't become too dependent on one individual person.

At the nursery, the baby has time to heal from the trauma that caused them to be an orphan.   They are loved on by the other orphans and their human caretakers.    

Their days start early in the morning when they are led out of their stockades and accompanied into the forest where they learn to browse.  The keepers will often pick some of the best branches and leaves teaching the elephants what they would have normally learned from their herd.    

The bond between the elephants and the keepers is so beautiful to witness through the pictures and stories from the Sheldrick trust as well as in person.

After a few hours in the park, the elephants return to the nursery for a milk feeding.   This is where you can see them during a public visit (see below "3 ways to visit the elephant orphans in Nairobi").    Here they get their beloved bottles and can take a mud bath if they so desire.    There is also a pile of sand / dirt where they can dust themselves.    The littlest ones need help and the keepers happily oblige by shoveling the dirt onto their little charges.

Then, it's off into the "wilds" of Nairobi National Park again.   After a few hours, they return to the nursery for another milk feeding and the mud baths and dustings are available in the same location.  

After about an hour, it's off to nature again for a little while and then it is time to return home for the night and the safety of the stockades.    

While in the park, the keepers help the elephants learn how to stay safe.   There are predators in the park (lions, hyenas, leopards) and other dangerous creatures (snakes) that the keepers watch for and protect the babies from.    

It is an incredibly difficult job that the keepers have.   They are away from their human families for months at a time and work pretty much non-stop.  There is always a baby needing some attention or chores that need to get done.

The cycle repeats itself every day through rain and drought until the baby is big enough to go onto his next step in re-wilding.   The next step is a journey to Tsavo National Park (or Umani Springs) to one of the three reintegration units to be able to fully transition into life in the wild.  

It can take up to 10 years for an elephant to transition and they are given the time they need.   Each individual is different as to how much time it takes.   Some transition super fast and others have a more difficult time.  

Be sure to see my posts about Ithumba Reintegration Unit and Umani Springs Reintegration Unit.    (I have not visited Voi yet).  COMING SOON.

When you are taking a trip to Kenya, it is definitely worth while to go to the nursery to learn more about the operations that Sheldrick Wildlife Trust does.   They don't just rescue orphaned elephants, they are also involved in helping injured animals in the field as well as helping supply water, fight fires, and rescuing and reuniting animals with their herds.  

You can support them by adopting an elephant, shopping in their store, or making a donation.   For those in the USA, UK, or Europe you can make a donation to their country specific charity in your own currency (and also maybe take a tax write off).       

3 ways to visit the elephant orphans in Nairobi

The orphanage is in Nairobi National Park and there are 3 different excursions where you can meet them.

1.  A public visit.   The public visit is open to the public for a small fee (reservations are required and you need to pay the Nairobi National Park entrance fee as well).   The visit is about 45 minutes to an hour long.    There are ropes in place to keep the tourists back.   The babies come in from the forest with their keepers.   The babies are introduced with a bit of their origin story and are fed bottles of milk by their keepers.   Then they take a mud bath (weather permitting) and a dusting.   Some of the babies are curious and will come up to the rope to check on you and others are a bit mischievous and will spray you with mud!

See my travel gallery for more pictures and videos of a public visit to the nursery.

2.  The night visit.   This visit is only open to people who have "adopted" one of the elephants.   It is by appointment only and starts in the late afternoon.    It is limited in the number of people that can attend.    You get to watch the babies come in from the forest (again, they are announced with a bit of their back story) and they run into their enclosures for some milk and freshly cut greens.    Once they are all back in the safety of the orphanage, you can walk around and visit them in their stockades and talk to the keepers.

You can visit this travel gallery for more pictures and videos of an evening visit at the nursery.  

3.  The private visit.   This is by far my favorite and is the most expensive.   Everyone in your group must have "adopted" one of the elephants.    You are in the same location as the public visit but this time there are no ropes.   As the babies come in, you wait on the elevated stone platform and watch as they are introduced and get their bottles.   Once they are all there with their bottles finished, you are allowed to walk amongst them and take pictures with them.    Some will just walk away from you and others are curious and love to be scratched!   Sometimes they will take a mud bath, sometimes just play pushing games (yes, even with you) and dust themselves.   Once again, you may get very muddy!   There is only 1 private visit a day and the reservations often fill up over a year in advance so plan ahead!

To see more pictures and videos of the private visit, visit this travel gallery here.

As prices change frequently, I've left the costs off this post.   You can head over to the Sheldrick website to get more updated information including costs.

So, let's address the elephant in the room (pun intended).   If you've been following me, you'll know that I am VERY against using wildlife for monetary gain and I often talk about doing research to make sure the charity you are supporting actually has the best interest of the wildlife at heart (and not the almighty dollar - pound - euro - you get the idea).

I have in the past, before I knew better, swam with dolphins, took pictures with tiger cubs, yes even ridden an elephant at a renaissance fair.  

At the time I was young and dumb and just wanted to be close to animals.    I often still fight my selfish desire of being close to wildlife and doing the right thing by not supporting the organizations that exploit wildlife.  

It is often so hard to research and really get to the bottom of whether an organization really does have the best interest of the wildlife at heart.   They all know the buzz words and they all know that people like us are being more careful about who and what we support.

I am still learning and I'm sure more mistakes will be made along the way.   I continue to do more research as well as try to educate people to do their own research so they can make an informed choice.

Sheldrick does fabulous work.    They make a huge impact for the wildlife and for people but is it really ok to walk amongst the babies and touch them?  

Some of my friends would say absolutely not and condemn me for being a part of that.   Does the 45 minutes of time with people a few times a day make the elephants want human companionship?   Will it make them search out humans once they are wild?

Will the public visits and other visits impact the re-wildling of the elephants?   

Sheldricks doesn't believe so.  And they have years of re-wilding elephants to show that the elephants are re-wilded even after a little bit of closeness with humans.    

So, I've made a choice to take time and walk amongst the babies in private visits (and at Umani Springs).   To get to know them and the keepers.   To learn more about the journey that it takes to get back to the wild.    

Not only does the visit bring in funding to support the organization, more importantly it educates people about the plight of the elephants and the work that is being done to save them.

I encourage you to make your own informed decisions about your interactions with wildlife.   A few easy questions - are they breeding (so they have a never ending supply of babies to bring in more people)?    What is the long term plan for the animals?  Are they being re-wilded?     Are they performing tricks?   Painting?   Or interacting in any way that is not normal behavior?   

If they aren't being re-wilded is it because they are injured to a point where they can't be?   And what is the plan for those animals?   Do they have safety and food for life?

Be your own advocate for animals and make your own decisions for what interactions you will partake in. 

I'd love to know your thoughts below.   Whether you agree with my decision or disagree.   I just ask that you give your opinions with respect.