In the wake of Mokogodo’s death last month, Latika had shunned the other babies — clearly, her heart was still aching. But mid-October, we had a breakthrough. As soon as she was let out of her stockade, Latika darted down to Olomunyak and Taroha’s bedrooms. They toddled out, she scooped them up (so enthusiastically that they seemed overwhelmed at first), and carried onto Wamata’s room. Latika ushered the three babies to the forest, nudging their backsides with her head, and spent the whole morning fussing over them. It was great to see her back to her old, nurturing self.

Sholumai, Choka, Kitich, Loldaiga, and Muwingu often sneak away from the herd and wander deep into the forest. This is normal behaviour for older orphans; they are growing up and beginning to explore their independence. Despite this, they never miss their milk bottles! Just before it’s feeding time, the big kids charge back to the herd, announcing their return with a chorus of trumpets.

We are lucky to have many willing nannies in our Nursery herd. In fact, fights sometimes break out as the girls vie for babies to look after! Such was the case one morning, when budding nanny Muridjo escorted newbie Wamata up the path. All of a sudden, Mushuru blocked their way — she also wanted to look after the little girl. Muwingu and Sholumai pushed Mushuru out of the way, understanding that it was Muridjo’s turn to care for Wamata. 

Even Weka, our lovable rogue, and Sholumai, who has historically been a reluctant nanny, are starting to change. Both girls are very fond of our lovable little bulls, Olomunyak and Pardamat. Only Kamili continues to show minimal interest in any nurturing role, preferring to do her own thing — and that's okay too! Kerrio and Sileita remain the Nursery’s main nannies, but they aren’t possessive; they know there are more than enough babies to go around.

Kitich and Mageno win the award for politest bulls in the Nursery herd. It has been particularly wonderful to see Kitich’s transformation over the past two years. When he first arrived in the Nursery, Kitich was thin and anxious. Now, he is a rotund, confident young bull who respects his Keepers and loves his friends.

Mageno continues to be the Nursery’s expedition leader, taking the older orphans on excursions deep into the forest. Sometimes, he forges ahead even when the others don’t feel like adventuring. On these occasions, we can hear him trumpeting loudly from a distance, trying to wrangle his absent friends. Usually, they ignore him and carry on browsing.

Choka is another gentle giant. One afternoon, he was having a brilliant time rolling around in a dust pile. After observing him for some minutes, little Talek walked over. She climbed on the big bull and slid down and climbed up again — and so the game went on. Choka was very gentle, allowing Talek to play on him and being careful not to push her off.

Last month, we rescued a young calf named Askari, who had been attacked by lions. Incredibly — and totally unprompted — Mzinga and Nyambeni chose to put their own days on hold to look after him. They would only take their milk by his side and refused to join the rest of the herd for mud baths, so dedicated were they to their little charge. The girls refused to go into their stables until they saw him safely inside his room (which sat between theirs) and continued to check on him through the night. It was humbling to witness their complete and total devotion.

Given the extent of his injuries, it was always going to be an uphill battle to save Askari. Despite our very best efforts, his body ultimately admitted defeat and he died on 22nd October. Mzinga and Nyambeni were subdued for the remainder of the day, accepting the loss and finding comfort with Kerrio and Sileita.

With the rescue of Askari, Shujaa was upgraded from a stable to a stockade. At first, he was unhappy with his new room and had to be cajoled inside each evening. But now, he is content with his stockade situation. He is still within chatting distance of his old stablemates, Mzinga and Nyambeni, but seems to enjoy the open air and greater space of his ‘big boy’ bedroom.

Talek is fastidious about feeding times. She drinks her bottle carefully and savours every drop, in contrast to some orphans who gulp down their milk, dribbling as they drink. Her neighbour, Pardamat, falls firmly into the latter category — he is pure chaos during feeding times! 

Olomunyak and Taroha sleep in adjacent stockades. Much like Pardamat and Talek, they are best friends by day but occasionally squabble at night. One evening, cheeky Olomunyak was pinching Taroha’s greens when his friend’s back was turned. In the morning, Taroha got his revenge: The moment his door was opened, he made a beeline for Olomunyak and gave him a strong shove. Taken by surprise, the younger boy almost fell over. Moments later, all was forgotten and the two were friends again.

The month ended on a happy note: Thrilled to be reunited with Mzinga and Nyambeni — who had skipped the big mud bath during the weeks they looked after Askari — our Nursery herd celebrated with a group swim. While the others paddled around them, Shujaa, Kerrio, Mzinga, and Nyambeni clambered all over each other in the water. Everyone was happy to be together.

The rhinos:

Raha keeps us on our toes. Some mornings, she wakes up full of beans and strides into the forest. Other days, the stubborn little rhino flatly refuses to walk any distance. She is always ready to walk further afield in the afternoon — sometimes, she just needs a few hours to motivate herself! 

True to rhino form, Raha is also quite ornery. Some days, she is a social butterfly, greeting Maxwell at his gate or happily napping alongside the Nursery’s resident warthogs. Other days, she is not in the mood for any hangers-on. Poor Mzinga and Nyambeni were rather rudely reminded of this one morning: The girls padded over to greet the young rhino as they sometimes do. Rather than welcome them, Raha charged towards them. Mzinga and Nyambeni didn’t seem too affronted and left the little rhino in peace.

In contrast, Maxwell almost always welcomes his elephant friends. (He’s an unusual case; because he’s blind, he has a forever home with us and is very accustomed to the orphan herd’s comings and goings.) One morning, Max was even complicit in a bit of elephant mischief! Walking out to the forest, Kerrio and Sileita stopped to say hello, as they often do. Kerrio stretched her trunk through the gate to touch the rhino’s head and rub behind his ears, while Sileita extended her trunk along his back. Maxwell stood perfectly still, soaking up the attention.

When Max returned to his pile of pellets, the two big girls scooted back to the stockades, rather than continuing to the forest. Spotting an opportunity, they nipped in and out of several rooms in search of leftover lucerne and pellets. One Keeper whistled but they ignored him — it took four of us to persuade the greedy girls to move out from the stockades!