The elephant had been through a terrible ordeal: After getting stuck in mud, he spent all his strength trying to extricate himself. Down to his last reserves, he couldn’t swing back to his feet. Seeing an opportunity, hyenas had descended, chewing his ears and back.

Time was running out. The helicopter flew the SWT/KWS Southern Vet Unit down to the far reaches of Tsavo. Meanwhile, our closest ground teams mobilised to the scene, giving the bull much-needed water and browse.

If the bull was to have enough strength to stand, his blood sugar needed a boost. The team plied him with glucose drips and administered a huge dose of glucose in his ear.

This infusion did the trick — we put a tow rope around his tusks, gave him a lift with the vehicle, and he swung to his feet and cruised back into the bush. After a truly harrowing experience, the bull was back in action.