HERD- HOEDSPRUIT ELEPHANT AND REHABILITATION DEVELOPMENT.
Hoedspruit Elephant rehabilitation and development trust is located in Kapama Game Reserve. It was purposefully built in close proximity to the Jabulani herd to easily integrate baby elephants. Their mission is to care for and rehabilitate the orphaned elephants in order to give them a second chance at life with a new herd. Just as VetBooks isn’t just an 8 man team and wouldn’t be able to accomplish its goals without the help from sponsors and students, HERD also needs your help. With your help they can expand their facilities and save many more orphaned elephants. They will be very grateful for any means of support. For more information on how you can make a difference visit: www.herd.org.za
HERD partnership
About HERD
With the growing numbers of orphans and displaced elephant calves in recent years, as a result of increasing numbers of poaching of elephant mothers as well as man vs. elephant land conflict, Adine Roode, MD and owner of Jabulani, took the step to build a dedicated elephant orphanage to provide a unique adoptive family structure for baby elephants in need.
It is our mission through HERD (Hoedspruit Elephant Rehabilitation and Development) to care for and rehabilitate these orphaned elephants, to give them a new family, and a second chance of life with another herd. The orphanage lies adjacent to the Jabulani Herd stables on the Kapama Private Game Reserve, which allows us to integrate each baby elephant into the herd according to their individual emotional needs.
The unusual family structure of the Jabulani Herd, the majority of which are orphans themselves, presents a unique solution for orphaned baby elephants in Southern Africa that vitally need to find a second herd to ensure their emotional wellbeing and survival.
Their story
The HERD (Hoedspruit Elephant Rehabilitation and Development) TRUST was established in 2021 following a 24-year journey in caring for elephants that have been displaced or orphaned due to human-elephant conflict.
The HERD Orphanage was built in 2019 in response to a growing number of young orphaned elephant calves that need a place of rehabilitation and more importantly, an existing herd that will accept them unconditionally.
The Jabulani Herd is now a family of 16 elephants, of which 11 are orphans and five that were born to the herd over 10 years ago. In 2004 the lodge, Jabulani, was built to sustain the herd, with proceeds from tourism assisting with the care and management of the rescued herd.
In 2021 a decision was made to move the Jabulani herd and the HERD Homestead operations (formally known as the Jabulani stables) together with the HERD Orphanage, under the umbrella of the HERD Trust which is a registered PBO Number 930072153. This allows for public funding to ensure the well-being of all the elephants.
The HERD Trust also commits to being active within our local communities through education and awareness, as well as our online communities, bringing a global audience together to educate a larger audience about the elephant species and the essential conservation efforts undertaken by various organizations around the world.
LESSONS IN CONSERVATION
We are very excited to have formed a partnership with Lessons in Conservation!
LiC has the beautiful mantra of serving to save. Their mission is: To create a long-lasting platform that raises awareness about conservation in rural communities.
They do this mainly via three ways:
1. By educating children from underprivileged communities that have limited access to information. These children are taught basic ecological principles and the importance of conservation.
2. By creating a connection between people and wildlife through first-hand engagement on educational excursions to reserves. This is done by taking the children on game drives.
3. By raising money to fund FGASA courses for identified outstanding students. FGASA courses will enable these students to become qualified game rangers and and continuous employment. The learners receiving these bursaries are encouraged to return to LiC and teach the new generation in underprivileged areas.
LiC identifies communities with youth that have the potential to be awakened. Their passionate team then takes their lessons into these communities. LiC has created presentations which cover the following aspects of nature and conservation:
- Nature Working Together
- The Big Five
- The Smaller Things
- Employment Opportunities in Conservation
The lessons include the use of physical specimens (carcasses and preserved animals) and games to ensure that the information being portrayed is both practical and interactive.
What an amazing initiative! We look forward to sharing our journey with them.