need to add title here

The Orphanage

April 26, 2009 6:56 PM

With the price of ivory increasing, more elephants are being slaughtered and their orphaned babies are left in need of special care at an elephant orphanage in Kenya. Bob Simon reports.

Poachers Leaving Elephant Orphans
Add a Comment See all 16 Comments
by idurt September 29, 2011 6:38 PM EDT
If you listen carefully and replace the story with human, human orphanage,the dispalced humans over this planet through war, genocide, the united nations do the same, try tirlessly to feed the starving orphanged people, the struggle to stay alive, be cared for and protected, it seems the animals and us humans share the same problem. WE are a different specie but, we are all so, so, very special, my heart weeps for this planet, us humans have too change or we are going to loose all that we love.
Reply to this comment
by Lyndet May 1, 2009 12:08 AM EDT
Very sad to me seeing this report on the elephant orphanage. Having visited a "real" orphanage with human children in a third world country, I cannot help but wonder how many children's lives - in this country and in others - would be changed for the better if they were treated like these elephants: being fed every three hours, having a personal assistance with them 24 hours a day, having cocunut oil rubbed on them (many orphaned children are starved for physical touch.) Shameful.
Reply to this comment
by Michaelinitaly April 28, 2009 2:04 AM EDT
Someone asked why they do not cut off the tusk when they are released. The tusks are needed for searching for food and the poachers will sometimes follow elephants or rhinos for days only to find the tusk was cut off, they will kill the animal so they do not spend time tracking the animal again. I used to live about a mile from the center and stopped by often, she is a amazing women and the guys are also amazing, 24 hours a day 7 days a week. they have to leave their family who do stop by and visit, but some are married with children. Pretty amazing.
Reply to this comment
by exSoCal April 27, 2009 7:49 PM EDT
What a beautiful, heartbreaking piece.

Wasn't it bad enough that the Japanese fondness for eating whale meat means that they persist, virtually alone among civilized nations, in killing those marvelous creatures, that the Chinese desire for shark's fin soup still results in the wholesale slaughter of sharks solely for their dorsal fins, and that even in the twenty first century, bears' gall bladders are still revered by Chinese as aphrodisiacs? Now we have the image of a baby elephant attempting to suckle his dead mother as a direct consequence of Japanese and Chinese desire for ivory trinkets.

Makes one ashamed to be a human being.
Reply to this comment
by andyaubin April 27, 2009 1:26 PM EDT
The 60 Minutes piece on the elephant orphanage was so great but it left a lot of unanswered questions. . . seems like the tusks should be removed from the elephants prior to their release back into the wild. What about boycotting the African countries that allow poaching and sale of ivory? I plan to educate myself regarding these issues as a result of the story. In the meantime, my praise and my financial contributions will go to Dame Sheldrick and her Trust.
Reply to this comment
by no_nonesense April 27, 2009 1:02 PM EDT
I saw this story the first time CBS ran it, and it is worthy of repeating. It's the kind of story involving animals , in the hands of humans, that should be told and retold.

Unfortunately it does not mitigate or soften the horrors of your previous week's serving of horrendous animal cruelty by torture and methodical killing of bulls at the hands of Draconian macabre morons who, through tradition, can call themselves "bull fighters." BULL! It's animal torture, pure and simple.

I'm still seething about it, and, like the elephant, I won't forget!
Reply to this comment
by angodin April 27, 2009 12:15 PM EDT
This is one of the most beautiful work done for wildlife conservation on the planet. Donations can be made online to the US Friends of the David Sheldrick Trust for a tax deductible contribution.
www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/html/help_USA.html
Reply to this comment
by spikeler April 27, 2009 10:36 AM EDT
Please let me know where to send a monetary contribution to help this wonderful organization! thanks.
Reply to this comment
by tinglet April 27, 2009 8:25 AM EDT
Please let me know where a monetary contribution can be sent
Reply to this comment
by MLC139 April 27, 2009 12:22 AM EDT
Thank you for reporting on this orphanage. I was there last year and it truly is an amazing facility. Here's the website for anyone interested in finding out more.

http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/
Reply to this comment
See all 16 Comments

60MinutesOverTime

60 Minutes Overtime is a weekly web show that begins where the weekly television broadcast ends
CBS News on Facebook

  • 48 Hours iPad App

    Big changes for the 2012-2013 season! Watch the current week's episode for FREE up to a week after it airs or subscribe for access to all shows, classic episodes and more!