Talking yesterday about the plight of some baby elephants, orphaned or abandoned by dire circumstance, I was leading up to a big and enthusiastic plug for The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust Elephant Orphanage.

Here is some of what it's about:

The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust is a small flexible charity, established in memory of David Sheldrick, famous Naturalist and founder Warden of Kenya's giant Tsavo East National Park in which he served from 1948 until 1976.

Since its inception in 1977 the Trust has played an extremely significant and important role in Kenya's conservation effort. Six Trustees assisted by an Advisory Committee of practical Naturalists with a lifetime experience of African conditions oversee and direct the operations of the Trust.

The orphan elephants and rhinos are just some of the many wildlife commitments we are involved in. The Trust does not solicit funds and relies entirely on donations from our caring and compassionate friends.

The Trust has been active in an educational capacity locally as well through articles for the Wildlife Clubs of Kenya and the Press. It has funded field trips for students and provided advanced training in wildlife management for promising students.

The Trust has provided a blueprint for the welfare of animals in captivity and, in the case of elephants, illustrated the sophistication of their communication and their social needs.

It has perpetuated vital field knowledge and experience that would otherwise have been lost, and made it available to all National Parks in East Africa and some beyond.

At the orphanage, the 'mothers' caring for the babies are all dedicated men who are with their individual charges 24/7. They even sleep with the babies, feeding every few hours for the tiny ones and making certain that covers kicked off are replaced, as little elephants are prone to pneumonia which is very hard to treat. (Elephants' lungs are attached on the inside of their ribs, so they are not able to cough.) During the day, the keep their babies slathered in sunscreen and well hydrated as they walk them into the park as a group, often guarding them from sun, pests and preditors as they stop for frequent naps.

All these are duties that would be done by mom. With a baby's skin very sensitive, she would place her body between the sun's direct rays and her baby, and would stand guard at naptime. She would dowse her little one with water at every available circumstance and keep it covered in a nice muddy layer to keep off the biting flies and other annoying critters.

Truly tiny babies, those under ten months or so, don't have the strength to hold their trunks up while they nurse, so mom lends a leg for trunk support. The orphanage 'moms' accomplish this feat by holding up a blanket between them and the baby, against which a trunk can rest while a bottle is sucked. (Not an easy thing to do if you think about it ... holding up a three gallon bottle of formula AND a blanket. Oy! My aching arms.)

This wonderful care is intensive and expensive. I have great admiration for the organization, and for the individuals dedicatiing so much of their lives to these magificent beings that share their planet with us.

Eventually, these babies grow up, and when they do the orphanage must become part of their past . More about that later ...