HERD has a sizable team of dedicated elephant carers, who assist in 24-hour-shifts to ensure that the little ones are never left alone or without a carer. The carers are the sole nurturers until the new orphans are strong enough to join the other elephant orphans and then the Jabulani herd.

Consistency of this core team is crucial, as the second loss of a ‘herd’ member can be extremely traumatic and can bring on a sudden change in the orphans’ health. Our carers play a significant role in the nurturing of the orphans with sustenance, healthcare, love, guidance, and hugs too.

A baby elephant’s milk formulation is exceptionally delicate and needs frequent adjustment, with extra nutritional supplements as they grow, as their mother’s milk would change naturally through the weaning stages and evolving needs. The gut of a baby elephant is extremely sensitive.

When an orphan has diarrhea, it has a ripple effect. It starts by impacting their gut lining, which in turn changes their energy levels, impacting on their emotional well being. They can move from hero to zero in a short period. Daily records of their feeding and bathroom habits are essential so to monitor whether they are excreting or urinating more than what they take in. Like human babies, they are very delicate and can quickly dehydrate.

A stable sleep pattern and a good routine for baby elephants is essential for their well being, along with the stimulation using toys, rubbing posts, frequent mud baths and good exercise. Our carers make use of the natural environment to enhance and strengthen their natural instincts such as sand-dusting and gaining the strength of their trunks.

Elephants’ complex social system and the value they get from being part of a family structure plays a major role in their well being. The discipline and peer structure created by the herd not only benefits the orphan introduced to its new herd, but also the well being of the herd by allowing them to ‘show’ and to fulfill their maternal instincts by adopting the new orphans.

Monetary funding is crucial for the daily operations of the orphanage during their critical formative years, as well as the potential long term financial impact of caring for a fully grown elephant if reintegration into the wild is not feasible. These potential reintegration projects would include the need for new land which will add additional costs to the HERD project.

Consistent management planning is essential to the success of an elephant conservation project such as HERD. Our Objectives, our principles; international, national and provincial legislation as well as animal welfare and protection acts, have to be continuously reviewed in order to adapt and include any changes that arise. A solid management plan includes the long term responsibility of elephant care, including research of the species, ethics and the possible reintegration into the wild.

In addition to the people on the ground, you need people who don’t deal with the day-to-day caring of the elephants to form part of your team. These are the people who strengthen your operation, who form part of your back-of-house. These are the individuals managing financials, media and communications and fundraising and who should be part of the management plan.

Ethical business operations are imperative to the success of the HERD. The way we treat our people and the elephants must always enhance their mental and physical well being. We educate and train our staff daily, knowing that their knowledge and learned passion for wildlife and elephant would be passed on through further generations. The HERD has immense value in the contribution of a resilient socio-ecological system where man and animal can share common resources and live harmoniously together, ensuring sustainable development of our wildlife, environment and communities.