Vita's Story

The female calf named "Vita" was found on the Tsavo River not far from the Tsavo bridge that spans the main Mombasa/Nairobi road. She was with another smaller calf, both of whom were in a pitiful condition, emaciated and starved, since both being between 1 and 2 years old were still milk dependent. (No calf orphaned under two years of age can survive without milk, even though at that age, they are eating vegetation.) People from the Chinese road gang reported seeing one of these calves alone, so our Keepers and Isaac Maina, our Orphans Overseer, set forth in the Trust's old "Greens Truck" to see if they could find and rescue what was obviously an orphan.Surprisingly, they found and rescued not one, but two, one of whom was "Vita". Sadly, the smaller calf died soon after arrival at the Stockades in Voi, but Mvita, who was about 14 months old at the time, settled in, and taking a cue from the other resident orphans, was hungrily gulping down milk. After several days being confined in the Stockades, she had tamed down sufficiently to be able to accompany the other orphans out in the bush during the day.