This April, he returned to where his story began — but now, one step closer to a life in the wild. This move also marked the conclusion of a nearly four-year filming project with the BBC, charting his journey.

This is Toto's story.

– Angela Sheldrick

My phone often rings delivering unexpected situations, but even by my standards, this was extraordinary. Head Keeper Benjamin was on the other end of the line, walking me through the most surprising turn of events: Ex-orphans Kitirua, Naisula, Olare, Loijuk had just arrived at the Ithumba stockades — and with them was a desperate tiny calf, who clearly didn’t belong to any of them. Aside from Loijuk, whose own daughter, Lili, was by her side, none of the females were old enough to be pregnant nor lactating. It was evident that they had come to deliver this baby to the Keepers, understanding he needed help.

The baby was confused to the point of frantic, trying to nurse from any elephant within reach. Based on his condition and desperation, the poor thing hadn’t eaten in days — and given that he was days old, it begged the question if he had ever had a meal, or even his mother’s all-important colostrum.

The KWS warden of the Northern Area of Tsavo East was called to assess the situation. It was very clear to all that the calf was an orphan — if he was to survive, he needed milk and veterinary care immediately. Racing against fading light, Taru flew the helicopter to Ithumba, where he found the tiny elephant now padding after Benjamin and the team. He was craving company and would latch onto anyone in his periphery.

In Kenyan culture, no matter what tribe you belong to, the arrival of a little mtoto — a baby — is an exalted blessing. In honour of how this baby was embraced by so many, we named him Toto.

By nightfall, Toto was cocooned in a cosy stable at our Kaluku Unit. I assigned Joseph, a green but very gifted Keeper, to his care. It is impossible to put to words what defines our talented Keepers. They have an innate quality and almost operate on a different plane than most humans. Joseph had done a wonderful job with Humpty the hippo, then had shown his connection with elephants through Lemeki and Thamana. I knew he had the innate skills for the prodigious task of raising a neonate.

To assist Joseph, I also brought on a new recruit named Sammy. Peaceful and unassuming, elephants gravitated to him — and as we always say, the elephants choose the Keepers.

And Toto certainly didn’t make the task easy. As it is, neonates are inherently difficult to raise. These little creatures are incredibly fragile and require forensic oversight. But Toto was on another level. He was a sensitive soul, very needy and attached to his Keepers, never having known his elephant family. Despite searching far and wide, both on the ground and in the air, we never did find anything that could explain why Toto was orphaned — to this day, that part of his story remains a mystery to us.

In those early days, Toto struggled to fall asleep inside his stable. Joseph and Sammy carried his mattress to the lawn, where the little elephant and his Keepers rested beneath the starlit skies. Only once Toto had started to drift off would they shepherd him back inside his stable, where he proceeded to sleep soundly for the rest of the night. This remained the routine for weeks.

We have some country artists who not only support our projects but visit us most years, Thomas Rhett and Tyler Hubbard. Their visits have rubbed off on Joseph, who now has a passion for country music. We soon discovered that Toto had an ear for country music, too. Joseph’s radio, perched in a corner of his stable, crooned him to sleep every evening. It was an enchanting scene: the small, hairy elephant tucked into his cherry red blanket, Joseph or Sammy sitting by his side, the radio blending with the nighttime sounds of Kaluku.

Toto’s infancy was punctuated by ‘Coconut Fridays’ — his weekly coconut oil bath lovingly administered by Joseph. Coconut oil is a wonderful skin supplement for baby elephants. It also has the fringe benefit of conditioning the bristly hair covering their bodies and keeping unwanted ticks and insects at bay. As a result of all the pampering, Toto sprouted into an exceptionally hairy creature, more woolly mammoth than elephant!

He was all about action. Pilots often had to wait their turn to take off, because tiny Toto was putting his Keepers through their paces up on the airstrip. He also adored chasing anything that moved — footballs, Keepers, or most irresistible of all, the vulturine guinea fowl. A swirl of bright blue feathers would explode from the ground, with a woolly little creature bulleting through their midst.

But for all the magic of Toto, there were also some very worrying spells. We weren’t spared the challenges that are typical of neonate orphans, particularly during the teething phase. There were many sleepless nights as we tiptoed through this notoriously fragile period. But Toto had a persevering spirit — and Joseph and Sammy gave him a reason to fight. We often find that elephants who are deeply bonded, whether to their Keepers or a special friend, make it through these challenging periods where others might succumb.

Toto spent his fragile first year at Kaluku in a cocooned existence with Joseph and Sammy. Then, in August 2023, a ‘little sister’ was delivered into his midst. A fellow neonate, Korbessa was just days old when she was rescued from Meru National Park. We wondered how Toto would react to this new addition, but he embraced her from the outset. We even had to make a gap in their shared stable partition, so they could communicate throughout the night.

As Toto’s health improved and he grew stronger, we felt he was ready to start spending time with the wider Kaluku herd, which at the time included Rokka, Manda, Mayan, Vaarti, Mwinzi, and Natibu. For a shy, sheltered little elephant like Toto, this was a seismic change. He was like an only child on their first playdate, peeking at the other elephants from behind Joseph’s dust coat. But with each passing day, he started to tiptoe out of his shell. Mwinzi and Natibu were his age-mates, and he soon dove into the hurly burly play of little bulls.

But with that said, it was a transition period — and for an elephant who hates change, Toto dealt with it in his own way. When the orphans gathered for their midday milk feed and mud bath, he would surreptitiously sidle over to the path that leads back to the compound. He would linger for a few minutes, just waiting for the right moment… to make a mad dash back to the stockades, running at breakneck speed!

You see, Toto knew that Joseph was back there with Korbessa. He also hates mud bathing — only on the very hottest days will he relent to get in the water; otherwise, he stands on the edge and splashes mud behind his ears. This little disappearing act gave him the opportunity to spend a quiet hour with his original Keeper and avoid the mud bath entirely.

As the years passed, Toto blossomed into a quirky, confident young elephant. He remained as lovely and mild-mannered as ever, fiercely devoted to Korbessa but also a real ‘bull’s bull'. Toto is one of those characters you wish you could cosset forever, but I knew it was approaching time for him to expand his horizons. Every orphan eventually outgrows the Nursery phase, craving wider horizons, more stimulation, and the mentorship of older elephants. Toto, Natibu, and Mwinzi were reaching that place.

But as we know, Toto is an elephant resistant to change — so I also knew that this move must be handled with great sensitivity. We started practising many months in advance of the graduation, feeding the boys (and Korbessa, who simply refused to be left behind!) inside the moving truck. Predictably, he initially balked at the new venue and dug his heels in. But with time to acclimate, he came to approach the truck at an eager pace. By the time graduation day came around, he was a pro.

We just published a lovely story and film charting the boys’ graduation to Ithumba, which charts every detail of the move. But I am very happy to report that Toto is adjusting to his new environment.

Joseph, who played such a pivotal role in his infancy, was there to shepherd Toto into this next chapter. He remained at Ithumba for the first two weeks, helping Sammy and Lekoli settle him into Ithumba life. As was to be expected, Toto was initially very clingy and followed them around like a shadow.

But with each successive day, Toto became more curious about his new home and the elephants and people who inhabit it. He started approaching the Ithumba Keepers and orphans, trunk outstretched in his signature friendly manner. We were so proud to see our shy little boy, introducing himself and making himself at home. Sammy and Lekoli remain by his side, while Joseph has returned to Kaluku to continue to look after and nurture another crop of precious babies.

While Toto’s story was unfolding before our very eyes, it was also being documented by the BBC. The timing was serendipitous: Just after his rescue, we were approached by Hello Halo about a film charting the journey of an orphan in our care. I knew that Toto was the perfect subject.

And of course, Toto’s story is really just beginning. At just four years old, he has five, six, maybe even seven decades ahead of him. He will remain in our care for many years to come — an orphan chooses when they are ready to go wild, but I predict that Toto will not rush into things.

However, when he chooses to reclaim his place among Tsavo’s wild elephants, he will be doing so in the place of his birth — our little mtoto turned into a big bull of Ithumba, just as it was meant to be.