The past few days have been incredibly busy for all of the DSWT's three Orphans' Units, but none more so that the Voi Unit in Tsavo East National Park. They have performed six rescues during this period including five elephants and one rhino.

A black rhino mother and her calf had been closely monitored for the past couple of weeks by the Kenya Wildlife Service Rhino Monitoring Unit of Tsavo East after the baby was mauled by lions. Dr Poghon of the Tsavo Mobile Veterinary Unit treated the tiny calf but she has since been unable to follow her mother due to her right leg being compromised by the incident. The mother has been forced to leave her calf for increasingly long periods in search of water meaning the baby was being left abandoned and unable to cope on its own. It became evident to all that she would die if not rescued because of her lack of mobility and the constant threat of lions. The difficult decision was then made by the Kenya Wildlife Service to rescue the tiny rhino in order to save her life.

Together with the Kenya Wildlife Service's Tsavo Rhino Monitoring Unit the DSWT Voi Elephant Keepers traveled to the calf's location and captured her. She was taken directly to the Voi stockades where she is presently having treatment for her wounds and taming down. She has been named Sobo and it is felt that when she is stronger she will be moved to Nairobi National Park to grow up together with the other black rhino orphans in our care and eventually integrate back into the Nairobi National Park black rhino population.