Throughout the history of this blog I have written about the terrible waste, tragedy and sadness in the killing of animals. I have written about my work with the Cheetah Conservation Fund and the effort to prevent the killing of cheetahs, particularly when it is so some rich person can have a cheetah as a pet.
I wrote about the sadness of the death of one of Kenya’s oldest elephants, Satao, a large male who succumbed to poaching after a previous attempt on his life. He was killed solely for the purpose of his enormous tusks. They were so large they could be spotted from an airplane. In a matter of minutes his 45-year old life was ended solely for his ivory tusks.
Should we believe that it is inevitable that we will lose all these magnificent animals? Should we give up hope? No. This week I am prompted to write again about saving animals from poaching because next month I have clients traveling to Africa with their 6-year old daughter who wants to grow up to be a vet for rhinos and elephants. And here is what is wonderful. On her recent birthday instead of gifts she asked for people to donate to the Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage in Nairobi where she is going to visit.
It is her generation who is going to save our wildlife and for that I am encouraged. And I know next month when they are out in the bush seeing these animals in their natural home her love and dedication will be forever cemented. And I will take pride in the fact of contributing to the experience of a future conservationist.
Safari Njema!