Makireti was rescued for the first time in the summer of 2010. The juvenile elephant was seen walking alone on a farm near Tsavo National Park in Kenya. She was discovered underweight and alone, with no sign of her mother or herd, which was especially concerning given that she was still a milk-dependent calf.
The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (DSWT) discovered the young elephant and returned it to its Nairobi nursery. She was afraid of her surroundings at first, and it took a lot of soothing just to get her to sip milk.
Makireti, on the other hand, finally ate and began to bond with the other orphans at the nursery.
Makireti was progressively reintegrated into the wild under DSWT’s care, and she never forgot the compassion of the individuals who saved her.
Makireti willingly returned to the rescue’s Ithumba camp in Tsavo last week, despite having a poison barbed arrow stuck in her side.
Makireti only has one, very small tusk – the other never grew in – which hardly makes her a good poaching target. But apparently, some people had thought her small tusk was still enough to hunt her over. In any case, she needed treatment.
“By this stage, Makireti’s friends had congregated around the stockade to visit her, very aware and concerned about her predicament,” DSWT wrote in a recent blog post. “By the time Dr. Poghon arrived, some of the ex-orphans had peeled away, leaving [elephants] Kilabasi and Kibo to babysit Makireti.”
While Makireti was tranquilized and forced to lie down so she could be treated, one elephant remained by her side till the conclusion of her rescue.
“Kibo then stayed next her for the length of the therapy, stroking her with his trunk and gently poking her with his foot to attempt to wake her up, but did not disrupt the team treating her, understanding she was being assisted,” DSWT stated.
Luckily, Makireti’s arrow injury wasn’t life-threatening, as it only hit a rib and did not deeply penetrate her chest cavity.
Once it was removed and Makireti woke up again, she decided to remain close to her friends Kibo and Kilabasi at the camp, rather than leave the camp and wander away on her own in the park – perhaps in gratitude for her their support during her time of need.
“Her wound is mending well, owing to the prompt care she received, and Makireti will hopefully be OK,” DSWT added.
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