Mission statement of the DSWT
The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust embraces all measures that compliment the conservation, preservation and protection of wildlife. These include anti-poaching, safe guarding the natural environment, enhancing community awareness, addressing animal welfare issues, providing veterinary assistance to animals in need, rescuing and hand rearing elephant and rhino orphans, along with other species that can ultimately enjoy a quality of life in wild terms when grown.

The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust was founded in 1977 by Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick D.B.E, in honour of the memory of her late husband, famous naturalist and founding Warden of Tsavo East National Park, David Leslie William Sheldrick, the DSWT claims a rich and deeply rooted family history in wildlife and conservation. The DSWT is today the most successful orphan-elephant rescue and rehabilitation program in the world and one of the pioneering conservation organizations for wildlife and habitat protection in East Africa.

Every morning there is the feeding of the elephant-orphan-babies, which is public and where guests may also be present. When the keeper informs, the responsible rangers of the elephant orphans are called, the guests present from where the individual elephant babies come from and how old they are or what happens with the little ones.

The babies get two special bottles of milk during the morning feeding, which they partly hold with the trunk and drink from it, or they are fed by the respective keeper. Afterwards they wander through an enclosure enclosed with a rope and therefore have the possibility to get very close to the people present. The animals' timidity is low, and the elephants can also be fondled by the people present. The whole show is totally relaxed and well-dressed, so you get a pretty good impression of the performances and the responsibility of the keepers.

After the breakfast, that in various stages and according to the size and age of the elephant-orphan-babies is held, the keeper and their proteges again went back in the bush and let the elephant babies play together and around. Learning and adapting in the natural environment is intended to help the animals get used to the environment more quickly. Each evening, the elephant children are taken back to the individual stables, where the animals' sleeping places are also.

Each keeper takes care of his own elephant-orphan-baby, which he supervises independently from the time he is admitted to the DSWT until the new release. This starts with very small elephant babies up to the somewhat larger animals. The little ones are shepherd and fed day and night, which goes so far that the keeper is sleeping all night with the elephant baby that is assigned to him and even in the stable with his elephant.

Each baby gets a name and a red-black mapped blanket, which is to warm the little one to sleep. The whole thing is funny with regard to the help of the DSWT, but one must not forget, however, why the pitiful animals were brought into the station.

At a certain age, when the animals are outgrowed and ready for a change, they will be brought to the Tsavo East National Reserve by the DSWT's keeper, and in the course of further preparation for an emigration, the elephant-orphan ultimately become actual Is released.

The people working in the DSWT distinguish the joy of nature and the help of the elephant orphans. They spend a lot of time with the animals and, as we know them, these guys are always been friendly, helpful and nice, but above all to the help of the animals.

Considering that every fifteen minutes an elephant comes to life in Africa through poaching, one feels obliged to put these people and their positive thoughts, which is really only for the welfare of the animals, under their arms.

Put an end of the senseless slaughter of the elephants for the ivory tusks, which after a certain time, like almost all the trophies, rotted in a cellar, by clearing up the people and poachers. Ivory can not and must not be a static symbol. No matter what part of the earth, it should be clear to all people that these are living creatures that have a right to life just as we do.

The trade in ivory is a great destruction of nature and contradicts the basic idea of mankind, which is characterized by the compassion of animals.

Sad, who has still not understood this until today, in the second millennium.