It's always a good time to adopt an elephant because it means saving a life and providing a brighter future for these magnificent animals.
Elephants are amazing creatures with incredible compassion and emotional intelligence. They roam carefully through their habitat and can live well into their 60's if they don't suffer from fatal injuries, fall terminally ill, become prey, or become victims of human interference. Elephants form communities and care for one another; how awesome it must feel to know that someone always has your back. Their compassion is astounding and has been studied by scientists and researchers for decades. Let's look at some of the reason why people would want to adopt elephants.
Baby elephant adoption
The Human Factor - The Good, The Bad, and The Downright Ugly!
It's sad enough that illnesses in the wild can claim an elephant's life, but worse yet, are the injustices that humans unleash on these wonderful animals. Elephants have long endured intentional harsh treatment from humans because of their valuable tusks or over the land about which they roam. It's hard to determine the exact number of elephants left in the world, but researchers believe that there are approximately 415,000 elephants left in the world, with about 20,000 to 30,000 elephants being poached each year. It's not easy for researchers to determine how many elephant calves are born each year and how many calves make it past their first year of life, but with a gestation period of 22 months, coupled with the rapid decline in elephant population, it may not be enough to balance out elephant deaths. This should honestly break your heart because it seems that more elephants are killed each year than are being born, and if we do the math, we are definitely pushing elephants into extinction.
Although human factors make up a huge percentage of the injustices that are done to elephants and other wildlife, not all humans are bad for elephants. There are kindhearted people in this world who want elephants and other wildlife to live free and happy in their natural habitats.
Elephants need good people to fight for their rights, and we want to let you know that every little bit counts. It's easy to feel overwhelmed when the problem is too big, and to feel helpless when the villains are winning, but persistence and active community involvement can make a huge difference in preserving the lives of elephants. Always do your research and find ways to fight for this cause because the elephants of the world need us. Don't buy ivory or encourage the mistreatment of elephants and other wildlife, instead, help each other understand the reasons behind these behaviors so that we can reverse the effects before it's too late.
Elephants can Feel Under the Weather Too.
Imagine that, just like us, elephants get sick and need a break from the daily grind. Elephants are very intellectual creatures, over the years they have figured out how to treat some illnesses naturally using herbs and rest. Not all illnesses can be cured with herbs, some diseases are a lot more serious than others, and if the elephants don’t get the medical attention they need, their lives may be in danger. Some elephant sanctuaries track elephants in the forest regions and national reserves to ensure that they are healthy. Should they come across elephants in the wild that are in need of veterinary care, they find the safest way to deliver medical services to these elephants and care for them until they are ready to go back into the wild.
Other issues that elephants in the wild deal with are malnutrition and/or starvation. When long droughts sweep through the plains, elephants suffer severely because they are huge animals and need water to hydrate and cool their skin as well as food for fuel. Large elephants can drink up to 50 gallons of water in one ,day and long droughts can cause dehydration and death. Long droughts also suck the life out of the land and this reduces the amount of food that is available to elephant populations. An adult elephant can eat upwards of 200 pounds of food in a day, which becomes a rarity in times of drought.
What Happens when you Adopt an Elephant?
Donating to elephant causes not only helps the elephant you adopt, but it also helps care for all the elephants that are rescued. When you adopt an elephant, your financial contribution is used to purchase food, shelter, developmental tools, blankets, and medical supplies for the elephants. Baby elephants under one year old who are uncared for in the wilderness, are at risk of becoming prey or dying from starvation without their mother's milk. Continuous care is required for these elephant calves to nurse them back to good health. Some baby elephants are found after traumatic events such as the death of their mothers, so they need more attention and love. The caretakers understand their stress and they sleep in the dorms with them to comfort them through thunderstorms and nights when they remember the trauma. Baby elephants are usually housed in nurseries until they can move on into adulthood, where they are integrated into the wild to live the rest of their lives. Constant support is necessary for our elephants because the orphanages may get overwhelmed with the huge number of orphaned elephants arriving at their facilities. The more we show our support, the more these heaven sent sanctuaries can continue to rescue elephants.
Truth be Told, Elephants are Adorable.
Elephants are peaceful animals, they travel far and wide in search of food and chasing the rain. They mind their business along the way and protect their young ones and each other from predators. Elephants are intelligent creatures who have learned to use tools to communicate with each other and to send a message to those that wish them harm. One of the more amazing qualities that elephants possess is their level of emotional intelligence. When you watch their interactions, you connect with their ability to be empathetic, caring, and protective. Elephants belong to a community, and they travel in herds that have been attacked over time, but together they stand strong and still fight to protect each other.
Ongoing Efforts to Stop Poaching and Save our Elephants.
The three main variables that affect the elephants in the wild are; poaching, human-elephant conflicts, and land encroachment / land development into the elephant habitat. Poaching is a huge factor that mostly affects African elephants; they are sought after for their ivory tusks which are smuggled out of Africa into other parts of the world especially Asia. Most orphaned elephants are victims of poaching, their mothers are hunted down for their ivory tusks and left for dead or slaughtered. When baby elephants become orphaned in the wild, they are likely to die within the first 2-3 days if they don't get the nutritious milk they need.
Humans are also responsible for land encroachment because we keep moving further into the natural habitat of these wild animals and forcing them to either flee or fight for their land, in which case we may lose both human and elephant lives during these "trespassing wars". Another important point to think about is that when human development moves into the elephant domain, elephants lose out on grazing ground, which affects their diet because they have a reduced supply of food available to them. When this happens especially during a season of drought, many elephants may be lost due to starvation.
Elephant sanctuaries need funds to combat poaching and other problems affecting elephant health and wellness. They are continuously researching these issues and searching for innovative ways to stop poachers and encourage human-elephant coexistence. Some of these efforts are costly, but they are necessary in order to keep up with the intensity of the issues. You can contact elephant conservation organizations and request information on the ongoing projects and ask how you can help.
Rules and Rewards.
Symbolically Adopting an elephant is a wonderful thing for you and for the elephant families. It's an amazing feeling to know that you are part of an elephant's rescue and care. When you adopt an elephant, you receive a certificate of adoption with an image of your elephant and the amazing story of how he/she was found and saved. You also get lovely swag items for adopting an elephant that you can display in your home as a reminder of your kind donation. These keepsake items may include paintings, postcards, t-shirts and so on. Depending on who you adopt your elephant through, you will get regular updates about your adopted elephant(s) to keep you informed about their well-being. This next one is HUGE! You have the opportunity to visit your adopted elephant and to spend some time finding out more information about his/her development if your adoption organization allows it. Some organizations allow you to visit your adopted elephant, but some do not allow this because they are considering the safety and well-being of their elephants. Most organizations allow you to volunteer in certain areas, but not when it comes to caring for the elephants because they need dedicated caretakers who will work with the elephants for years instead of days or months. It's important for the elephants to form bonds with their caretakers because it evolves into trust which is an important factor especially for elephants recovering from traumatic events.
When an Elephant Dies…
When an elephant is born, he/she is welcomed into the community by various herds… When an elephant is growing, he/she is nurtured into adulthood by the herd… When an elephant falls, the elephant community helps him/her get back up on his/her feet… When an elephant falls in love, his/her love is celebrated by all… When an elephant dies, he/she is mourned for years and never forgotten. Look out for our upcoming blog on elephant mourning titled "When an Elephant Dies".
We cannot imagine a world without elephants, so please think of this as a cause to save elephants for generations to come. Love Thy Elephant!
There is Hope for Elephants, it's called Humanity
Please keep our magnificent creatures alive. Keep up on your research and help with conservation efforts when you are able to. You can also adopt an elephant; by doing this, the funding you give is used by care takers to provide food and aide to this elephant until their rehabilitation is complete and they are ready to be released back into the wilderness. Thank you for all your support and consideration, please join us next time when we walk you through the adoption process if you need it, but most websites make it vert simple.
Thank You!
Thank you for joining the fight to save our elephants, you can shop for stylish elephant merch at https://elefootprints.com/. We donate 10% of our profits to elephant conservation efforts in Africa. Please subscribe to become a member of the Herd so that you can get newsletter updates. Don't forget to give us a shout out on Instagram/Twitter/Facebook/Reddit/Youtube #elefootprints
