With all the rain that has come down, people might have gotten a bit down themselves. I wanted to collect leaves from the backyard and put them over some of my favorite plants but I didn’t want to go out in the rain.
The rubber of my rubber boots split ages ago and so I donated them as toys to some donkeys I knew. I have some old Ugg boots but I hate getting them wet. I hate getting wet!
To keep from going stir crazy, I follow several websites daily. One is Sheldrick Wildlife Trust located in Kenya, Africa. It’s my favorite go-to. I see their posts in the morning about the orphaned elephants they’ve saved and that makes me happy.
How the little elephants become orphans is not so happy, but watching how SWT rescues them is amazing. Just the fact that they are able to rescue babies at all is uplifting. Also, it’s fun watching the orphans run in a line, eagerly from browsing in the forest to their caretakers who are waiting for them with their milk bottles.
I started watching SWT when I lived in Sri Lanka. I’ve seen babies be rescued, grow up to go back out in the wild and then visit SWT with their own babies.
My recent favorite, Kerrio, now 3 years old, was rescued after her herd stampeded when hearing gunshots between warring tribes in the area. She was found alone, lying down and was rescued via Land Rover, sheltering overnight and taken to SWT by helicopter.
The logistics of elephant rescues can be incredibly challenging. Once at SWT, the team of caretakers realized that Kerrio’s back legs were semi paralyzed. I’ve seen videos of her going from dragging her back legs to being able to walk without a hitch.
I’ve seen other orphans fall in love with her and become her best friends and loving aunties.
I also watch videos of HAWS, Help Alberta Wildies Society, which is a team of passionate volunteers led by Darrell and Barb Glover whose goal is to save and protect free-roaming wild horses throughout the Eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains in Alberta, Canada.
HAWS has been on my radar for several years. With the help of their strategically placed 70-plus cameras, I came to truly understand what happens in the wild. Not the glossy, yet educational, National Geographic videos I’ve seen over the years. Darrell narrates most of the videos in his calm voice and gives his followers a heads-up when something disturbing occurs.
The videos show other wildlife that comes into focus of the cameras; bears, wolves, moose and even a squirrel that eats out of Darrell’s hand.
Recently HAWS rescued several wounded days-old foals and it was incredible to watch them get vet care, watch them bond with their surrogate mothers, change colors, run after each other and their mothers like the little Wildies that they are. Unable to go back in the wild, it is sweet to see that they have a future due to the care of HAWS.
My favorite website of a local sanctuary is Oscar’s Place, a sanctuary in Hopland that rescues donkeys that are destined for slaughter for their hides, for cosmetic demands in China.
In visiting Oscar’s Place I have fallen in love with donkeys. I actually have loved donkeys for many years but at Oscar’s Place I’ve been able to bond with several. If only OP had a small little cottage that would house me and my four kitties, I’d never leave. I’d be out scooping poop, brushing Patches the blind donkey who I sponsor and generally be a goodwill ambassador for all the lovely donkeys and the humans who have rescued them.
What’s a girl to do?…list the websites:
SheldrickWildlifeTrust.org HelpAlbertaWildiesSociety.com OscarsPlace.org
Lucy Llewellyn Byard welcomes comments and shares. To contact her, email lucywgtd@gmail.com
