By Dick Houston & Jon Stevenson

Daphne Sheldrick was a remarkable individual. Born in 1934 in Kenya to British parents she became interested in animals at a young age and maintained that interest throughout her life. She is an author, an expert in animal husbandry and is particularly noted for the raising and reintegrating of orphaned elephants back into the wild. She along with her husband, David Sheldrick, was co-warden of Tsavo National Park for 21 years. She is the founder of the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, (SWT) one of the oldest and most respected conservation organization. SWT is dedicated to the conservation, preservation and protection of wildlife.

Baby elephants are particularly hard to raise. They are usually orphaned because the mother has been killed by poachers for its ivory. They are often so traumatized they refuse to eat or drink and will die mainly from grief and loneliness. If they can get them to feed they have to be bottle fed a special formula every 3 hours round the clock. For years no one knew what to feed them as they could not process cow’s milk. It was Daphne who discovered that coconut milk is most like that from a female elephant and mixed with baby formula baby elephants could digest it properly. Her discovery is credited with saving thousands of baby elephants who would otherwise starve to death.

Sheldrick was a recognized authority on the rearing and rehabilitation of many wild creatures, including not only elephants but black rhinos, buffalos, zebras, elands, kudus, warthogs to name a few. For her work as a conservationist she was awarded an MBE, Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, by Queen Elizabeth and separately elevated to UNEP’s Global 500 Roll of Honor. She was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine by Glasgow University along with several other prestigious recognitions from Kenyon, British and conservation organizations.

The page below is from an interview down by Time magazine in 2012. Daphne died in 2018 after a battle with breast cancer but her legacy will be felt for generations to come. Elefence recommends reading her book, “Love, Life, and Elephants: An African Love Story”.