On the very first day of this month, a team of experienced Keepers were sent on a rescue mission to El Karama Ranch in Laikipia. The little orphan they were seeking had been on his own for some time, and the reason was clear from the very beginning: Born with bowed back legs, his mobility was compromised, and perhaps he hadn’t been able to keep up with his herd in a moment of haste.
Today we received a new rescue from El Karama Lodge in Laikipia, and we named him Rama. We sent the elephant moving lorry to rescue him due to his size, and when he arrived the Keepers chose to put him next door to Larro and Kiasa as the two girls could help comfort him. This morning when Kiasa came out of her stockade, she refused to listen to her Keepers and kept trying to run off to Rama’s stable door, but the Keepers were trying to usher her to the forest as the new arrival was sleeping. Sadly, for Kiasa, when she finally managed to get back to his stockade, she seemed disappointed to see that he was fast asleep on his hay and not as his door. As she had no one to greet she followed the rest of the herd out to the forest.
When the orphans got to the forest they split into two groups as Maisha headed off in the company of Kiasa, Roho, Naleku, Maktao and Naboishu. As they walked off the rest of the herd stayed put and were all being watched over by Nabulu and Larro and the remainder of the Keepers. It wasn’t long before Kiasa once again started to disrupt the group. She seemed to get a fright from something and immediately started to run off trumpeting and flapping her ears. Maisha, who seemed confused by what had scared Kiasa, was quick to run after her and she was followed by Roho, Naleku, Maktao and Naboishu. The Keepers quickly ran over and calmed Kiasa down, but they couldn’t see what might have scared her and wondered if she was just being naughty.
As the orphans were running back to their stockades, Kiasa charged in front of all of them and the Keepers and took a slight detour to get to Rama. The Keepers really had to coax her into her own stockade as she wanted to stay near Rama. As the Keepers were ushering and calling her into her stockade, she kept rumbling at them in protest. Eventually, one of her Keepers managed to entice her in with her milk bottle. Once Kiasa was in, all the orphans settled for the evening.
All the orphans seemed to be in a great mood this morning as they all exited their stables and stockades. This morning, all the orphans gathered outside Rama’s stockade to greet one another and the new rescue. Some of them, however, were being rather sneaky and trying to steal some of Rama’s fresh greens. Ziwadi, who is all too happy to do her own thing, was quick to move off and continue her normal routine of drinking water from the water troughs, quite unperturbed by the new rescue. Naboishu was being a little rough with Olorien, Naleku, and Roho so he was quickly chased away by Maisha as the rest continued to eat Rama’s greens.
Before the orphans could finish Rama’s greens, the Keepers began ushering them out to the forest. Mukkoka, Maktao, and Kiasa all seemed to be waiting for little Bondeni who was still enjoying a playful moment with Rama. As the Keepers called for Bondeni he happily came running around the corner with Mukkoka, Maktao and Kiasa close behind, and all the orphans made their way out to the forest.
Later in the day, as the orphans were browsing, there was a tussle between an older male warthog and the younger resident warthogs. As the orphans have become quite used to the resident warthogs, they have at times seemed to be rather protective of them and today seemed one of those times. As the older, larger male was running after them, Nabulu, Kiombo, Maktao and Mukkoka all stepped in to protect their friends. As Maktao chased the older warthog in one direction, Nabulu, Kiombo and Mukkoka made sure that he didn’t run back towards the resident warthogs, giving him no exit other than to run off into the forest. Nabulu ran after him to make sure he was gone, but once she thought he was far enough away she slowed and then came running back to the others in excitement. The four of them then ran around excitedly trumpeting and rumbling as if they were celebrating their win. The resident warthogs now at peace went back to their grazing.
Boys will be boys, and there isn’t a day that goes by where Maktao and Kiombo don't spend time together, or enjoy a wrestling match or two. No matter the time of day, or whether they are in the forest or within their stockades, these two will always find time for a game. Maktao is calm and gentle, whereas Kiombo is boisterous and determined to win these strength testing matches. Today, however, their game took a turn for the worse when they seemed to have a disagreement over something. The Keepers didn’t happen to see what may have caused their irritation but they soon realized that they weren’t playing anymore.
Maktao flared his ears and trumpeted aggressively and charged after Kiombo. Although Kiombo is much stronger, Maktao was outwitting him at every corner. Their fight was getting so serious and aggressive, that the Keepers were trying to separate them but neither bull would listen to them. Eventually Kiasa and Maisha stepped in and separated them, neither of them would disobey Maisha as she is the matriarch and she was very firm in ending their game.
It was such a hot afternoon as all the orphans came running down to the mud bath for their 3pm bottles of milk. All the orphans seemed so thirsty that as soon as they finished their bottles of milk, they all gathered around the water troughs. Ziwadi, however, couldn’t get close enough to the water troughs so one of the Keepers grabbed the hose pipe and gave it to her. Ziwadi thoroughly enjoyed her water directly from the hose pipe; she didn’t want to stop drinking or share with any of the other orphans. Once all the orphans had their fill of water, they walked back to the forest where they short a short browsing session before heading back to the stockades for the evening.
With Ziwadi’s health condition, she does have her quieter days and is not always as spritely, but her health has been far more stable these past few months, and all in all she has been doing much better. This morning as the orphans were being let out of their stables, Olorien could be seen waiting for Ziwadi just outside her stable. As Ziwadi came walking round the corner Olorien stood to wait for Ziwadi beside the water troughs for her routine morning drink, but this morning she didn’t stop. The Keepers wondered if perhaps she wasn’t that thirsty as she had been drinking from the hose pipe for quite a while yesterday afternoon.
As the orphans were waiting for their 9am bottles of milk, Ziwadi seemed to realize that she hadn’t had any water and she quickly snuck off back to the stockade compound to go for a drink. One of the Keepers spotted her walking off and followed her back to the compound. Once they were back she swiftly began to drink for one of the water troughs. Once she had returned to the rest of the herd with her Keeper, some of the other orphans had already run down for their milk bottles, and it was her turn to go next.
Kinyei is very similar to Ziwadi in some ways, as she too doesn’t always like to get involved in the hustle and bustle of the other orphans’ games. This afternoon, as the orphans were enjoying a long mud bath, Kinyei stood to one side and enjoyed her own little peaceful mud bath, splashing mud and dust on her body.
After their mud bath, the orphans enjoyed a short browse and all happily headed back to the stockade compound for the evening.
Roho and Naboishu can both be naughty and bully some of the other orphans in the Nursery herd. Roho is always so spoilt by the older girls that he can be jealous of some of the other orphans and then he can be a bit of a bully when he chases them away. Naboishu is still quite shy and nervous around the other orphans and Keepers and he can often be quite boisterous, pushing the other orphans around and throwing his weight around. Today, however, these two bulls enjoyed a long wrestling match and seemed to be having the best time pushing each other around the forest. Kiasa, eventually separated them, and chased Naboishu away so she could enjoy some time with Roho.
Olorien is still quite a shy girl and although she is generally friendly with her Keepers, she can at times be a little temperamental and pushy. This afternoon as the orphans were having fun around the mud bath, Olorien was quietly mud bathing on one side, whereas Bondeni was dashing around the water having the best time charging around. Bondeni eventually got close to Olorien who didn’t seem eager to share her spot and she looked as though she was getting ready to chase the young bull away. Larro, who wasn’t too far away, seemed to pick up on Olorien’s mood and she quickly moved over to monitor them. As soon as Olorien saw Larro approach she decided to move away and continue wallowing in the mud.
For some reason, the orphans always try to steal each other’s greens from each other’s rooms in the evenings; it is as though they think that their neighbours greens are always sweeter. This evening, Maisha and Kiombo were both stealing Maktao’s greens and eventually they stole all of his greens! One of the Keepers eventually stepped in and put all Maktao’s greens back but Kiombo kept stealing them throughout the night and Maktao kept stealing them back.
Rama is settling down well into his new life at the Nursery and he seems to be putting on some good condition and despite being bow legged, he can move around with ease. Mukkoka has been fantastic with Rama and is always happy to greet him and keep him company in the evening. This morning, as Mukkoka was leaving his stockade to head out to the forest, Rama was standing at his stockade door pushing at the gate to try and join the Nursery orphans as they headed off. The Keepers, however, were not ready to let Rama out as they felt he needed a few more days within the stockade compound to gain his strength and become a bit more settled.
Every morning Kiasa walks past Rama’s stockade to greet him and if any of his greens are close enough to his gate, she will grab a bunch of his branches to eat as she makes her way to the forest too. This morning, however, her morning routine was interrupted by Nabulu who was already standing at Rama’s gate eating his greens. Nabulu, who can be temperamental at times, was not in any mood to share the greens with Kiasa and every time Kiasa would try to get close Nabulu would push her away and rumble at her. At one-point Nabulu was so aggressive that she even seemed to upset Kiasa a little, as Kiasa yelled out in protest.
As soon as Maisha and Maktao heard Kiasa yell, they came running over to see what had happened. Nabulu appeared to be quite worried when she saw Maisha come running around the corner and as a result she let Kiasa be and allowed her to get to Rama’s greens. Once Kiasa had calmed down, she came back and greeted Rama before grabbing some greens.
This morning the orphans had their midday bottles of milk down at the mud bath and they all enjoyed a playful moment. Bondeni, as always, was practically beaming with excitement and rolling all over the dust mound, and throwing dust all over himself as well as all around him. Roho was also having the best time playing one of his favourite games; climbing on Maisha, Larro and Kiasa in the middle of the mud bath. Maktao and Kiombo were enjoying a brief wrestling match out in the mud bath before wallowing near one another.
The orphans had a quiet afternoon browsing in the forest.
Throughout the evening we had some heavy showers which were welcomed by all as it has been very hot over the last few days. Roho, who is normally very scared of the heavy showers, was quite calm last night and did not seem to mind too much. Maktao and Kindani, on the other hand, were not too happy with the heavy rains and both seemed to have a restless night.
Kindani, who was already fast asleep, was abruptly woken up by the rain hitting her roof, and she would not settle down until the rain stopped. Maktao was very much the same as he kept pacing within his stockade and trying to get to his friend Kiombo for comfort. Kiombo was very calm and just stood quietly near his friend. Once the rain stopped, Maktao and Kindani both calmed down.
The orphans again had their midday bottles of milk down at the mud bath and after all the rain there was so much mud for them to roll around in. Kiasa, Larro, and Roho were all having so much fun rolling around on the muddy dust mound. As they were rolling around, Kiombo came over and decided that he too wanted to play Roho’s game of climbing on the girls’ backs. Kiasa hadn’t noticed that it was Kiombo but when she suddenly felt his weight on her belly she yelled out in protest. With some struggle, she managed to get the heavy bull off and then she quickly stood up and chased him away.
Roho, who was now finished dust bathing, ran off and engaged Kinyei in a brief wrestling match. The two have become quite close and will often enjoy a short game with one another. As they seemed to be having so much fun, Naleku ran over to join them. They all had a fun game before following the older orphans back to the forest for the afternoon.
It was another wet morning as the orphans were getting ready to head off to the forest to start their day of browsing. As it was still drizzling, the Keepers decided to keep Ziwadi, Kinyei, Kindani, and Bondeni within the warmth of their stables and to take them out once it had warmed up a bit.
As the orphans were walking out to the forest, most of them, especially Maisha, Nabulu, Kiasa, and Naleku, didn’t seem to want to get wet and were amusingly trying to avoid their bellies rubbing against the wet branches. In addition, none of them wanted to lead as they didn’t want to be the first to move the branches as they walked. Mukkoka, however, didn’t seem to care about the rain or wet branches and he was happy to lead the orphans out to the forest. Unlike when it is warm and the orphans spread out along the path, this morning they were all following Mukkoka in a single line to avoid the bushy, wet parts of the forest.
Mukkoka led the orphans to an open plains area within the Nairobi National Park, where the orphans could eat some of the longer grass as well as the branches from the nearby bushes.
Maxwell had a wonderful day wallowing in his muddy pool within his stockade. With all the rain, his mud bath was full of water and he couldn’t be happier, rolling around and covering himself in mud. When he was finished wallowing, he would rub up against his stockade wall, enjoying a good scratch, before heading to his bedroom where he enjoyed short sporadic naps on his bed of hay.
The Keepers decided that this afternoon would be a good day for Rama to come out and join the rest of the Nursery herd in the forest. Some of the Keepers walked back to the stockade compound with Maisha, Kiasa, Nabulu, and Larro so that the girls could escort Rama out to the forest. Rama was so excited to finally be able to join the Nursery herd and all the orphans, apart from Nabulu and Kiombo, were very welcoming to the new bull as he arrived in the forest. Maisha was sure to keep Rama close to her side the whole time, whereas Kiombo kept trying to climb on his back and Nabulu kept prodding him with her trunk. As Kiombo and Nabulu kept bothering him, Maisha was sure to keep them away from him.
In the evening, as the orphans were making their way back to the stockade compound Rama was happy to follow Maktao, Larro, Ziwadi and the Keepers back to his stockade where he settled for the evening.
Once all the orphans had settled in the forest, some of the Keepers escorted Rama out to join them. This morning, the Keepers noticed that Rama seemed to have some problems with his sight but that he could easily follow the Keepers’ voices. As such, as Nabulu was leading the rest of the Nursery herd further afield, into the denser parts of the forests, Rama stayed behind with some of his Keepers happily browsing near them.
As the orphans were settling down to browse, Maktao was busy loosening up some soil with his tusks which drew the attention of some of the younger orphans. As it was quite an overcast morning, Roho, Naleku, Kindani, Bondeni, and Kinyei happily rolled around in the loose soil near Maktao. As Maktao was happily supervising the younger orphans, Roho didn’t dare annoy any of the others as he seemed to know Maktao would tell him off.
The Keepers fed all the orphans their 9am milk bottles close to Rama so that he could get used to taking his milk amongst the herd. Mukkoka and Maktao were both being extremely friendly to him and kept trying to comfort him, but Rama wasn’t too sure of them and kept running off. Later in the afternoon, however, Rama happily settled to browse near Ziwadi, Kinyei, Bondeni, and Kindani. As the older orphans made their way further into the forest, the younger orphans and Ziwadi stayed back to keep Rama company. Kindani was so sweet as she seemed to keep checking on Rama throughout the afternoon and they all happily browsed near one another for the rest of the afternoon.
When it got close to 5pm all the orphans grouped back together, and the younger orphans escorted Rama back to his stockade.
As the orphans finished their 9am bottles of milk, they decided to enjoy a soil bath on some of the wet soil out in the forest. As most of the orphans were busy rolling around, Maktao and Roho seemed to be concocting their own mischievous plan to climb on the backs of as many of the orphans as possible. Maktao would try to climb on Nabulu and Maisha, whereas Roho would try to climb on Olorien and Naleku’s backs. Roho, however, didn’t have much luck as Naleku quickly caught onto his plan and chased him away.
Roho, seemingly unperturbed by Naleku, then decided to try his luck with Naboishu who was also rolling around in the soil. He managed to climb on Naboishu’s back for a couple of minutes before Naboishu got up and then Roho continued to play with Larro who was nearby. Larro, being the fantastic nanny that she is, was happy to play with the young bull.
As the orphans were gathering to run down for their 3pm bottles of milk, Ziwadi was busy chasing after some of the resident warthogs that were nearby. As the warthogs are quite used to the orphans chasing after them, they will sometimes stand their ground and not run off. This seemed to frighten Ziwadi, who quickly did a 180 and came running back to the other orphans flapping her ears and trumpeting.
The warthogs had quite a lucky day as they were able to share Maxwell’s Lucerne pellets with the large rhino, as Max didn’t seem to take much notice of them the whole day. Max enjoyed a lovely afternoon browsing on the greens in his stockade.
Naboishu seems to be a part of the boys club now as is he always eager to take part in the wrestling matches. This morning, after the orphans finished their 9am bottles of milk and settled to browse, Mukkoka and Naboishu began to wrestle one another. These are all important skills for Naboishu to learn and he seems to enjoy testing his strength against Mukkoka, as they are closer in size than the other bulls. They seemed to be having the best time that even gentle Maktao decided to join in and Naboishu showed no hesitation in challenging Maktao either. As Maktao is always so gentle, he was happy to challenge Naboishu without applying his full strength as this would have been an unfair advantage based on his size alone.
Ziwadi seems to really enjoy spending time with Kindani and Olorien and she will often be seen browsing with the two young girls. She is always so gentle with the younger orphans and they all seem to enjoy her company. In addition, Ziwadi always seems to know where the best greens are, so the younger orphans also enjoy following her as she can help them choose the best greens too.
As the orphans were in the forest, Maisha, Nabulu and Kiasa led the older orphans further afield. Maktao, however, loves spending time with the younger orphans and he seemed to be hanging back to keep them company. Maktao was happily browsing with Kindani, Kinyei, Bondeni, Ziwadi and Rama as the orphans headed further into the forest. The younger orphans were also happy to browse alongside this gentle bull as they seemed to know that he was always so gentle.
Larro, whom the Keepers strongly feel will be the next matriarch of the Nursery herd, continues to shine as one of the younger orphans’ nanny. This afternoon, she could be seen happily digging up some soil for the orphans to play in. Bondeni and Kinyei were the first to partake in the dust bath and they were soon joined by their friend Kindani. Larro happily watched over them before joining in in the fun.
Bondeni, Kinyei and Kindani, who all grew up together, have remained the closest of friends at the Nairobi Nursery. They often will browse amongst each other and will all too often enjoy many a playful moment together, and this afternoon was no exception.
It was another wet morning as the orphans were waking up to start their day. The orphans were once again being very funny as they made their way out to the forest, as they were all seen struggling to avoid the wet branches and stick to the driest path in the forest. As the older orphans were shoving each other along the path trying to keep dry, the Keepers felt it best to keep Olorien, Naleku, Roho, Bondeni, Kinyei and Kindani behind with Ziwadi so they could settle and browse in peace.
Nabulu seemed to be in a grumpy mood this morning as she kept pushing Maktao, Kiombo, and Mukkoka if they came close to her. It appears she didn’t want the bulls taking over her lead, so she kept chasing them back. The bulls seem to clock Nabulu’s plan as every time she tried to push them, they would dash into the bushes and then hide amongst the other orphans before trying again. This game continued until Kiasa was happy to break off from Nabulu’s path and head into the dense bushes. All the orphans were happy to follow Kiasa and then Nabulu eventually followed too.
Unlike the elephants, Maxwell is very happy to walk in the muddiest parts of his stockade, before enjoying a long mud bath. Max really loves to cake his skin in mud which is excellent in protecting his skin against the sun and any insects that may bother him. The warthogs didn’t visit Max today, so he was able to enjoy all his Lucerne pellets and didn’t have to share. Once the day warmed up Maxwell enjoyed a long nap in the sun, warming himself up and drying off the mud.
The orphans had a lovely day browsing in the forest breaking only for their milk feeds.
As the rain continued this morning, the Keepers decided to keep Ziwadi, Bondeni, Kindani, Kinyei and Rama within the warmth of their stables and stockades. Around 11am, when it was time for the orphans’ midday bottles of milk, the day had finally warmed up enough for them to come out to the forest and join the rest of the Nursery herd. They were led out by Ziwadi and one of their Keepers.
Roho and Naleku have such a close relationship to the all the older orphans such as Maisha, Nabulu Kiasa, Larro, Mukkoka and Maktao that they have always enjoyed walking out to the forest with them no matter the weather conditions. As the day warmed up, they were even seen enjoying a small mud bath in one of the puddles out in the forest. As they were rolling around Kiasa, Maisha, and Larro were all watching over them. Larro enjoys showing off her growing matriarchal skills as she looks after not only Roho and Naleku, but also Bondeni, Kinyei and Kindani. She continues to demonstrate that she will one day be an excellent matriarch.
In the afternoon, Maktao and Kiombo were both browsing and wrestling each other. After a couple of minutes browsing, they would quickly challenge each to a strength testing match and then browse again before then chasing each other again in another game. They were even both trying to climb on each other’s backs, which would then result in them wrestling once more to see who could win. They were having so much fun, that even Maisha decided to join them, before the orphans had to make their way back to the stockade compound.
Once the orphans had settled to browse in the forest this morning, Mukkoka was enjoying a playful moment with Roho, Kinyei, Kindani and Bondeni. He seemed to be teaching them how to wrestle and paid special attention to Roho who is bigger in size and able to challenge him a bit more than his smaller friends. Kinyei, who enjoys challenging Roho, seemed to be happy to join in on the action and she even tried her turn at challenging Mukkoka. As Roho and Mukkoka were playing a bit more aggressively, Kinyei didn’t play with them for too long.
As Roho continued to wrestle with Mukkoka, Bondeni, Kindani and Kinyei began their own game of rolling around in the soil in the forest. They all enjoyed rolling against each other and covering their bodies in soil.
Once Roho was finished challenging Mukkoka, he went onto challenge Naboishu who was browsing nearby. Their game, however, was short lived as Maisha came over to check on all the younger orphans and consequently distracted Roho from his game. The orphans then all resumed their browsing activities and a peaceful rest of the day.
Naleku continues to have a very close relationship with Mukkoka. This morning, as the orphans were coming out of their stables, Naleku appeared to be looking for Mukkoka who was still in his stockade. Naleku walked up to Mukkoka’s gate and the two could be seen greeting each other. A Keeper was quick to appear to let Mukkoka out, and as soon as his gate was open the big bull came out of his stockade and let out a deep comforting rumble to the young girl. Naleku, now seemingly content, began to lead her friend out to the forest. Naleku and Mukkoka have been close since her arrival, as Mukkoka was her first neighbour in the Nursery.
After the orphans had their 3pm bottles of milk, they all enjoyed a short mud bath in one of the puddles out in the forest. Maktao and Kiombo enjoyed a funny playful moment, where Maktao wouldn’t let Kiombo out of the muddy waters and kept blocking his path and running around the puddle to make sure all his exit routes were blocked. Their game continued for a couple of minutes before Kiombo finally managed to sneak past his friend.
As the time was approaching for the orphans’ 9am bottles of milk, Larro appeared to be gathering the younger orphans such as Bondeni, Kindani, Olorien, and Kinyei together, to run down for their milk bottles. Larro, who is all too used to the milk feeding procedure, seemed to know that if her group was ready first, they would be allowed to run down before the others. Generally, when it comes to milk feeding time, the Keepers will allow the younger orphans to go down first as they drink slower than the older greedier orphans. Roho and Naleku, however, will tend to run down closer to the older orphans are they are so close to the likes of Maisha and Mukkoka, and quite enjoy drinking their milk bottles near them. As Larro had gathered up the younger orphans, the Keepers allowed her to run down in the first group this time.
Ziwadi is probably the least greedy orphan out of the Nursery herd. Unlike the other orphans who rush back in the evenings and finish their milk bottles before eating their greens, Ziwadi will sometimes eat her greens before having her milk bottle. She doesn’t wait too long before having her bottle, but she isn’t in any rush like the other orphans, and once she has finished her bottles she doesn’t look for any spilled milk in her milk bucket, but will instead just focus on her greens before sleeping.
Throughout today, Nabulu was eager to look after Bondeni, Kinyei, and Kindani, which seemed to make Larro a little bit jealous as she has been enjoying looking after the younger orphans over the last couple of days. Larro kept trying to get the little ones to leave Nabulu but they were all happily browsing with Nabulu and didn’t budge. Eventually Larro seemed to come up with a cunning plan to entice the younger orphans. Her plan was to head towards the milk feeding point and to see if the younger orphans would follow and much to her satisfaction, they all followed her. Larro, now followed by Bondeni, Kindani, and Kinyei, led them away from Nabulu.
Nabulu didn’t seem too bothered by the younger orphans leaving her as she happily enjoyed a short dust bath before heading over to join Maisha, Maktao, Kiasa, Kiombo, Mukkoka and Naboishu who were all browsing nearby.
It is very common for black rhinos to be very lazy during the day and then active at night as the day begins to cool. As such Maxwell will often spend his days lounging around during the heat of the day and then munching away on his greens and Lucerne pellets in the cooler hours of the evenings and early mornings. During the evening, the Keepers can hear him crunching down on his fresh acacia branches and others before he makes his way around his stockade and later into his bedroom to sleep. Max’s favourite greens are his acacia branches.
Ziwadi continues to move at her own pace and is rarely in a rush for anything and does not run very often, even sometimes when she should! Today, for example, would have been a great day for Ziwadi to run as fast as she could. Nabulu, Kiasa, and Naboishu were all in a very playful mood and were all dashing around the forest. Suddenly the naughty trio came across some buffalo which gave them the biggest fright and they all came running back towards the herd, trumpeting and rumbling as if to warn the orphans to run away. Ziwadi, however, didn’t take any interest in what Nabulu and the others were trumpeting about and she continued to browse quietly on her own.
Fortunately for Ziwadi, the Keepers stepped in and scared the buffalo away, making sure that Ziwadi could carry on browsing. She was very uninterested in all the excitement and only interested in browsing. She still isn’t very coordinated so running isn’t easy for her, but she also isn’t as excitable as the other orphans so she often just doesn’t run as much. Once the other orphans realised that the buffalo had been chased off, they all calmed down and returned to the Keepers. Maisha then led the orphans in the opposite direction of the buffalo so that they could continue browsing in peace.
The orphans had a quiet day browsing, and only took a break for their milk bottles.
It was a beautiful morning as all the orphans were let out of their stables and stockades. All the orphans seemed to be in great spirits as they happily followed their Keepers out to the forest. Once in the forest they all happily settled to browse, apart from Maktao and Kiombo who were already engaging in their first wrestling match of the day. Their game lasted quite a while as they were pushing each other all around the forest and rumbling at each other. Eventually they settled down to browse as they both seem exhausted from their fun game.
As the orphans were getting ready to run down for their midday milk bottles, Ziwadi, Olorien and Kindani were amongst the first group, but Ziwadi didn’t seem to take any notice that she had to still wait before running down and she simply ran straight past her Keepers. As such, little Olorien and Kindani followed and all three of them went rushing down to the Keepers who were all waiting near the milk wheelbarrow. As soon as she finished her bottle of milk Ziwadi walked straight back into the forest to continue browsing. She really seemed to be on her own little adventure today, more so than other days.
The orphans had a quiet afternoon browsing in the Nairobi National Park.
Nabulu, Naboishu and Mukkoka all seemed to be on an adventure since morning as they led the older orphans much further into the forest to browse. Once all the orphans had settled to browse, the trio walked even further into the forest to browse not worrying about staying with the others. Although it is important for the orphans to learn how to choose a path and head off in different directions, the Keepers did not want them wandering too far off and they therefore ushered them back to the other group of older orphans. The younger orphans stayed back with Rama, Ziwadi and some of the Keepers.
All the orphans regrouped when it was time for their 9am bottles of milk, and the younger orphans went down first, with little Bondeni in the lead. Once they had finished their bottles, the Keepers ushered them into the forest so that they could make way for the older orphans who were all very eager for their milk bottles, especially Naboishu who continues to trumpet in excitement.
Nabulu and Naboishu didn’t continue to browse with Mukkoka as he had linked up with Kiasa. Kiasa and Mukkoka happily browsed in their own corner of the forest. The orphans had a lovely day of browsing and games, with big ear flapping throughout the forest as they all spread out to get the best greens. The browsing was only interrupted for a couple of wrestling matches and of course the delicious milk feeds.
All the orphans were full of energy this morning as the Keepers were letting them out their stables and stockades. Some were drinking from the water troughs whereas others were eating the greens just outside Maxwell’s stockade, also greeting the large black rhino as he came by. Ziwadi, continued her morning routine of drinking from all the water troughs as she made her way out to the forest. As she would stop at each water trough, the other orphans carried on ahead. Once she was finished drinking, she and Rama walked out together in the company of their Keepers.
Once out in the forest, Maktao and Kiombo who are always so playful were busy chasing each other around, wrestling each other and pushing over any tree stumps they could find, both in an effort to demonstrate their strengths. No matter the day or the climate, these bulls will always find time to enjoy a wrestling match with each other, or to partake in some of their other fun games such as climbing onto the other orphans’ backs and so forth.
Nabulu, Larro, and Kiasa, however, are not always the most playful of orphans, Kiasa has her mischievous moments and Nabulu can at times will wrestle the bulls but most of the time they will keep busy browsing and looking after the herd. Kiasa does also wander off looking for new places to browse but she is not as bad as Ziwadi, who is constantly moving around looking for her favourite greens and giving her Keepers the run around. However, since Ziwadi has been browsing with Rama and the younger orphans, she has been wandering less often than usual.
It was a chilly morning as the Keepers started letting the orphans out to start their day in the forest. The Keepers decided to let Ziwadi, Bondeni, Kindani and Kinyei out of their stables last so that they could stay in the warmth of their rooms a little bit longer and even when they were let out the Keepers left their blankets on to keep them snuggled up. In the wild, the younger, smaller calves would have the warmth of their mums bellies to keep them snuggled up and the older elephants would have the warmth of the herd. Rama, who is older, is also more resilient to the weather, but under the watchful eye of Maisha he was also kept warm within the herd.
As the day warmed up the Keepers decided to take the orphans down to the mud bath for their 11am bottles of milk. The Keepers as always organised the orphans into their smaller groups to run down for their milk. The younger group with Bondeni, Kindani, Kinyei, Rama, and Ziwadi went down first and as soon as they were done with their milk bottles, they all walked over to the water troughs to have a drink of water. As they were drinking the older orphans were sent down in their groups, Maisha coming own with Roho and then Naboishu and Kiasa coming in the last group.
Once all the orphans finished their milk bottles, they all enjoyed a long wallow in the mud bath, splashing around and having a great time together. Even Rama enjoys his mud bath, and he will often be seen standing on the edge of the mud bath splashing himself with mud, caking his whole body. In the afternoon, the orphans enjoyed a quiet browse in the forest before heading back to the stockade compound for the evening.
Maisha continues to be a very caring matriarch and she is fond of all the younger orphans but Roho continues to be her special boy. This morning, she went straight over to greet Naleku, Kindani, Kinyei, Bondeni and Roho whom were all standing outside their stables near one another. As soon as Roho saw Maisha, he let out a deep rumble to greet her and walked straight over to where he remained by her side. Maisha led all the orphans out to the forest, where her and Roho continued to browse near one another.
This afternoon, the orphans enjoyed their 3pm bottles of milk down at the mud bath as it was another warm afternoon. As soon as the orphans finished their bottles of milk, they all dashed into the mud bath. Kiasa, Nabulu, Maktao and Naboishu were throwing mud all over the place and were rolling up against each other. It is always such fun to watch the orphans enjoying themselves in the muddy waters and Bondeni who always takes an interest in the water troughs. As the orphans were splashing around, Bondeni was once again charging around the mud bath, playing with the water troughs and scratching up against one of the walls nearby.
Once all the orphans were done having their fun, the Keepers led them back to the forest where the browsed a bit more before heading back to the stockade compound for the evening.
Maxwell was up and about very early this morning, he first enjoyed some of his greens before heading over to his Lucerne pellets where he stood eating for quite some time. After his morning fill of Lucerne pellets, he went and lay in the sun for a little bit before then moving over to the other side of his stockade where he grazed on some of the fresh grass. Max looked so majestic as he ate his grass and it is always so phenomenal how despite being blind, he can move around his stockade without any issues. Once Max had finished eating his grass, he walked down to his water trough where he enjoyed a long drink of water before napping once more.
In the early hours of the morning, the orphans were browsing right near Max’s stockade and they will often greet the rhino before heading out to the forest. Max is so used to their routine now that when he hears them heading off, he will just resume his normal activities. Once out in the forest, the orphans had a quiet morning browsing and only paused to have their bottles of milk. None of the orphans were particularly playful today as they all browsed quietly amongst each other. Mukkoka and Kiombo engaged in a short wrestling match before resuming their browsing.
In the evening, the orphans happily made their way back to the stockade compound. Rama is now used to the routine of heading back in the evenings and he is always happy to follow the Nursery herd and his Keepers.
It was a chilly morning as the orphans were let out of their stables but none of them seemed to be particularly bothered by this as they immediately began browsing on the greens in the stockade compound. Kiasa was one of the first orphans to leave her stockade and she walked straight over to Maxwell’s gate where the rhino was standing listening to all the orphans. Naboishu and Nabulu were next to follow and they too came over to greet Maxwell, before eating some of the greens from within the compound. Once all the orphans were ready to go, they all made their way out to the forest.
As the older orphans were heading deeper into the forest, the Keepers chose to keep Bondeni, Kindani, Rama, Ziwadi and Kinyei a bit closer to the stockade and milk feeding points. They all had a lovely time browsing peacefully before re-joining the older orphans to go down to the mud bath for their 3pm bottles of milk.
Once down at the mud bath, Bondeni gulped down his milk and then dashed around the mud bath area, playing with his friends Kindani and Kinyei. Naleku and Olorien were also enjoying their own playful moments and all the orphans were covered in mud by the time the Keepers ushered them back to the forest. Bondeni is always eager to run around, and when he got back to the forest, he was still full of beans and kept running around playing with his Keepers and friends.
This morning, Nabulu, Kiasa and Mukkoka were all in a playful mood and they were all busy dashing around the forest with one another, trumpeting and rumbling as they pushed through the thick shrubbery. After a couple of minutes of chasing each other, Nabulu and Kiasa began to have their own wrestling game and then Mukkoka walked off to join Larro and Kiombo where he engaged Kiombo in a short strength testing match.
Today, Maisha enjoyed her midday milk bottle with Bondeni, Roho, Naleku and Ziwadi. The Keepers decided to change the groups around a little and allow Maisha to be with some of the younger orphans. Olorien, Kindani and Kinyei were then let down with Kiasa, Larro and Naboishu and today Kiasa was so well behaved that she didn’t bother the younger orphans at all when she finished her milk. Even Larro didn’t try to steal anyone else’s milk. Once all the orphans had finished their bottles the Keepers ushered them back to the forest. Ziwadi and Olorien enjoyed browsing near one another until it was time for the orphans to head back in the evening.
Ziwadi was in one of her adventurous moods this morning and as soon as she got out to the forest she wanted to head off in her own direction. The Keepers had to keep a close eye on her as she kept moving away and they didn’t want her to disappear too far away. At one point, she was so deep within the bushes that the Keepers almost lost sight of her but as she was wagging her tail around, swatting away any flies, they spotted her quickly and ushered her back to the group.
The Keepers are always amazed by little Ziwadi because she doesn’t seem to ever worry about getting her milk like the other orphans. Unlike Larro, Naboishu, Mukkoka and many of the others she doesn’t have the automatic clock in her mind that lets her know when its time for them to get ready to run down for their milk. If it weren’t for the other orphans and the Keepers, she would probably just happily browse throughout the day. As it was time for the orphans to head down for their 11am bottles of milk, the Keepers kept her close so that she didn’t wander off again.
The orphans had a peaceful day browsing in the forest.