About Zululand Rhino Orphanage

The Zululand Rhino Orphanage facility exists to care for the rescued orphan rhinos. The orphans rely heavily on our carers for the first three to four years of their lives when they receive dedicated around the clock care, love and protection. Our ultimate aim is to rehabilitate these survivors and return them back into the wild where they belong.

Many rhino orphans have been successfully released back into the wild, where they are closely monitored to ensure they adapt well to their life in the wild. This monitoring also helps protect them from poachers and other threats to their survival.

With the help of the parent Game Reserve security and collaboration with the neighbouring local communities, the orphanage is well protected and the location kept secret.

The Challenge

With the unprecedented increase in rhino poaching in the last decade we have seen a huge rise in the number of rhino calves left orphaned as a result of attacks on their mothers. Sometimes the little rhino baby is left grieving over the loss of its mother, but on many occasions, the calf is also badly injured. The poachers will attack the baby to stop it ‘interrupting’ them while they try to remove the horn from its mum before the anti-poaching patrols reach them.

With so many rhino lost to poachers, over 7,000 in the last ten years, every life matters as we work to save one of Africa’s most iconic species. While in some locations poaching is decreased in recent years, Kwa-Zulu-Natal is experiencing some of its worst poaching of all time. This dedicated rescue and rehabilitation centre is critical to saving the lives of as many rhinos as possible.

The baby rhino and hippo currently homed at the orphanage or have been returned to the wild include:

Rhinos: Umoya, Ingelosi (Ngelo), Bhejane (Bheji), Billie, Bhoboza (Boza), Lazula, Griffin, Samson, Grumilo, Mulayo, Kulula (Lula), Msasaneni (Msasa), Ukuthula (Ukoo), Mnene, Vikela, Bindi, Tweed, Inkululeko (Leko), Khula, Bhanoyi, Zimisele (Zimi), Makhosi, Mpilo, Storm

Hippos: Charlie, Moomin

Our Impact

Caring for and being ‘mother’ to a rhino baby is no easy task! It may look like the best job in the world, but it is a tough one. A little calf needs milk every two hours, 24 hours a day, and with no rhino mum on hand to provide the milk when it is needed, it falls to the human carers to provide the nourishment the baby needs. Sleep is definitely hard to come by for the surrogate mums!

For security reasons the Zululand Rhino Orphanage is in a secret location and is not open to the public.

To date, our achievements include:

The care of twenty four rhinos and two hippos

This includes, but is not limited to, ensuring nutritional sustenance through milk and supplemental feed, as well as veterinary care and attention to ensure our orphans are in good physical health. Mental stimulation and the encouragement of natural behaviours is also a key aspect of our orphans’ rehabilitation, as is caring for their emotional needs following the traumas many of them go through losing their mothers.

The release of eight rhinos back to the wild

Eight of our orphans have been successfully released back into the wild and we receive regular updates on how they are doing. All our re-wilded orphans are fitted with tracking collars to ensure the teams on the ground can keep a close eye on them to ensure they are settling well in the wild and to keep them safe from the risk of poaching. Re-wilding our orphans gives them the chance to function as part of their natural habitat, playing an important ecological role whilst also having the chance to add to future generations of their species.

The expansion of the orphanage facilities, doubling the capacity

Sadly, rates of rhino poaching have soared within the KwaZulu-Natal province in the past few years, and more poaching means more orphans. To cope with the influx of orphans we have expanded the facility doubling our capacity, which means we can take in and care for many more orphans should the need arise. This has involved the creation of a second ICU, an expanded outside boma area and facilities for our dedicated team of carers.

Provision of security cameras on all rhino bomas

Tragically even rhino orphanages are not immune from the risk of attack, and security is paramount. This is why the location of our orphanage is kept secret and anti-poaching units are deployed on site. As part of our security protocols, we have now added cameras to all our rhino bomas (outside areas), meaning our orphans can be monitored at all times.

Upgrade to the orphanage perimeter security fencing

Along with our upgraded camera system, a strong perimeter fence is a key security factor. Recent upgrades have meant that our fence is now stronger than ever. (ask Simone for more detail)

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