Baby meerkats

The event of the year on our farm happened in November, when one of the meerkats had three babies underneath the tools container! At the beginning, the little babies only poked their heads out around 6pm when it was cooler. Mommy would then pick them up by the back of their necks with her mouth and pull them back under to their “den”. 

Baby cheetah Cubby

On 17th November 2011, a baby cheetah was picked up from a farm located 100 kms away from Naankuse (Farm Lorraine). The farmer that gave him to us received him from another farm where his mother caused conflict with its cattle.

Scarlett the vervet monkey

Scarlett was given to us by the veterinary clinic in Windhoek. The vervet monkey grew up on a chain in the back yard of a family in town that kept her like their pet. 

Fly into a brighter future

The year on the farm ended with some very bad news. On the 30th of December, when we were going to bring in Picasso into the office as we have done every single afternoon since October 2008, he was nowhere to be found. We spent hours looking for him everywhere between all of us, but our beautiful African Grey had completely disappeared. The morning after, a volunteer saw him outside the farm area, but when he got closer, he opened up his wings and flew away into the horizon. 

We are very sad that Picasso is gone, he has been a loyal friend to all of us for a long time. We hope that he has found a new life in freedom or a new family to take care of him. We will miss you, Picasso.

New Cheetah Mum and Cubs

In October we received calls from two seperate farms in Namibia who had both captured a cheetah mother and 3 young cubs by accident and needed them to be relocated and given a safe home. 

Cheetah Care

Samira's Skin Infection

At the end of August, volunteers and staff noticed that our lovely Samira had some bad swelling on the left side of her face and neck which was growing each day and not only that, but she was starting to loose her fur in the same area. Given Samira's old age we were extremely worried and brought her in for a closer examination immediately. 

Implants for our female Wild Dogs

As our 13 male and female wild dog pups are reaching sexual maturity (which happens between the age of 12-18 months usually), we needed to implement measures to prevent the animals from breeding as breeding in captivity is illegal in Namibia. We had two options - either seperate the 8 females and 5 males by building a second camp, or giving the females contraceptives. We decided to keep the pack together and give contraceptive implants to the females. These are similar to a human form of contraceptive and take the form of a small implant which is inserted just underneath the skin. 

Farewell Old Friend

Tessa the Dog, November 2001 – September 2011

It was with great sadness that we had to say goodbye to one of the first animals to arrive at N/a’an ku se.

Animal Welfare

Our gorgeous caracal Godiva has been in the wars with feisty Yoda and suffered a broken front leg as a result. After an operation where they inserted pins to keep the bones in place together, Godiva wore a bandage and has been kept seperate from the others while she heals. Now Yoda had demonstrated his wild instincts, we're looking into whether he can be released back into the wild.

4 new kittens at N/a'an ku se

Caracal Cubs - Rocky and Ivy

It was a normal Saturday morning and several N/a'an ku se staff were making the most of a weekend off and picking up supplies in Maerua Mall. The Mall security guards told them about 2 tiny caracals who had been seen wandering around without their mother, seemingly seperated from their mother. This is an unsafe environment for 2 small cubs to be in, with no mother to guide them or direct back to their natural habitat to feed. They are also at high risk of being taken by people wanting the cubs as "pets". 

N/a'an ku se and Kosmos Open Day - Saturday 16th July

Join us at our beautiful wildlife sanctuary for the N/a’an ku se and Kosmos Open Day on Saturday 16^th July.   

The Sanctuary will be open to visitors from 09.00 – 17.00 (last entry at 15.00) and Kosmos will be broadcasting live from our luxury lodge from 10.00 – 13.00. There will be lots of food and drinks and entertainment for all the family including a jumping castle, a drawing area and the opportunity to meet our baby baboons – Carola, Shauna, Rafiki, Elvis and Rudie. 

One brave lady versus half a tonne of lion!

Friday 3^rd June 2011 will go down in history as the day that Cila took on three very large lions, and won!


Cila had set herself the fundraising challenge of a sponsored overnight sleep out in the lion camp with our three lions, Clarence, Winnie and Nancy. 


Having raised €1029 in sponsorship, Cila was ready for the challenge. So after a day spent preparing her sleeping quarters (the back of a Toyota pickup truck!) with every bit of bedding she owns, Cila was ready for the off.

Final security briefing

Locking Cila into the car!

At 4.30pm on Friday afternoon, Becca was put on gate opening duty and Jo was sent to one side of the camp to distract the lions with meat whilst Flo drove Cila into the camp on the other side. Once Cila was safely parked inside the camp Flo made a hasty exit from the camp and we waited for the lions to come back over to see what was going on. It didn’t take long for the lions interest to be piqued and they were soon back on Cila’s side of the camp, observing the proceedings from the safety of the bushes.  

Entering the camp

Flo makes a speedy exit!

The lions were initially very wary of the car and wouldn’t come near it, not even when we threw some treats into the camp for them (a horse’s head each – yum!) But once the sun went down the lions grew far bolder and ventured out of the bushes to eat the horses’s heads and have a snoop around Cila’s car. Fortunately after a few circuits of the car the lions decided they were more interested in finishing the horses’ heads and snoozing.

Cila in the camp, the challenge begins!

Here come the lions keen to see what's going on!

Despite freezing temperatures Cila managed to make a video diary of the whole night and kept the commentary going even whilst Winnie was snoozing right next door to the car!

  Watch Cila's video diary here!

At 6.00am the next morning, Cila’s challenge was completed and it was time for her to exit the camp. Unfortunately the lions were also fully awake and were all keeping a firm eye on Cila and her support team outside the camp! Plus, after their feast of horses’ heads the night before, the lions weren’t very hungry and despite Jo’s, Becca’s and Lucy’s best efforts, distracting them proved a little harder than before. Finally, after a rather nerve-racking 60 minutes, Jo, Becca and Lucy (with the aid of some chicken) were able to draw the lions away from Cila’s car long enough for her to drive out of the camp. Mission Accomplished!


We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who sponsored Cila for this sleepout. Thanks to your amazing generosity we have raised €1,029 to put towards feeding all of the animals here at N/a’an ku sê.

Click here to watch Cila’s brilliant video diary….

New Baboon Camp

The 9th of April saw the unveiling of the new camp! Many of the volunteers and staff gathered to see the baby baboons try out their new home and helped take them from their old smaller camp and move them into their new camp. They were so excited, running round and exploring! Stretching out in their new camp they adventured into their new housing and enjoyed their new play area, running and jumping and climbing! They now have much more space to run around in and monkey bars and a tyre swing to play on. The baboons looked so happy and all the volunteers and staff, whose hard work had gone into building the camp, also looked delighted!

Lightning's Success Story

In December 2009, we released one of our young leopards, Lightning, on Wilderness Safari’s Little Kulala reserve.

On Saturday 23 April this year Rudie received a phone call from Johan Steyn of Tsauchab River Camp regarding a leopard with a radio collar which he and his guests have seen regularly at Tsauchab. Rudie knew immediately that it was Lightning. Her radio collar had stopped giving out signals in January this year so all of the N/a an ku sê team were very excited to hear that, after 15 months of freedom, Lightning had been seen and that she is in good health and there is no conflict with the farmers in that area.

It is fantastic to know that Lightning can add value to Johan Steyn’s tourism market. It is a very good example of how tourism and conservation can work together and we now send all information about Lightning to Johan so that he can share it with his guests.

Elvis has not left the building – he has just arrived!

Elvis was about 4 days old when he was found on the road side clinging to his mother who had sadly been shot. The family who found him had friends with a farm in the area so gave this tiny baboon bundle to them to look after. The family looked after Elvis very well for 3 months. As time went on they started to realise how big Elvis was growing and how boisterous he would become and that, unfortunately, baboons do not make good pets. They decided to bring Elvis to N/a’an ku se where he could be looked after at our sanctuary and bond with other baboons, learn baboon traits and become part of a troop.

Elvis came to us three months ago and has grown in size and personality ever since. When he first arrived at N/a'an ku se Elvis was very shy and wary of the other baboons. However over the last few months he has become far more confident and even stands up to Carola and Shauna, the alphas in the baby baboon camp! During the day Elvis spends his time with the four other baby baboons who have all just moved into a new camp. As he is only 6 months old and at the age where he would naturally still be with his mother, our volunteers still look after him over night, giving him his evening bottle feed and taking him to sleep with them so that he feels safe. Elvis is definitely the most tactile of the baboons and loves sleeping with the volunteers; however he has recently be given a new nickname – Smelvis – as he tends to have an extremely smelly nappy in the morning!

To adopt Elvis, or any of our other baboons please email donations@naankuse.com

A New Year on the farm

It's a new and exciting year and we can't wait to see what 2011 has in store for us! But for now, here's an update on the last few months of 2010... 


Flo the machine!

July saw the arrival of 14 Wild Dog pups and with only around 250 African Wild Dogs remaining in Namibia, we have a big responsibility to look after these precious animals. We needed funds to build them a safe camp here and so brave Flo took on the challenge of a sponsored "Wild Dog Walk". 

African Wild Dogs are known to move up to 70km per day in search of food - whilst Flo does like his food, he's not usually known to go to those lengths in search of it. So taking on the challenge to walk as much of 70km in one day was a huge feat for our Head Researcher.

The walk took place on 22nd November around N/a'an ku se reserve and Flo achieved a staggering 62km in one day!!! Well done and thank you Flo for sacrificing your legs and feet for our beautiful Wild Dogs and raising over N$15,200!

If you're as impressed as we are and would still like to sponsor him, please email donations@naankuse.com

Home sweet Home

Our two special leopard cubs, Shakira and Ombeli, finally moved into their new home in December 2010. A huge thanks to everyone who donated and contributed to help us build their camp. 

After a very comfortable few months living up at Marlice’s house, a new purpose built camp was made for them near the rest of the carnivores. The 3 hectare camp gives them all the space they need (as well as giving Shakira room to eat her food in peace without Ombeli stealing it off her!) and they’re having a wonderful time exploring their new territory. 

Shaun and the volunteers still take them out for their daily walks, although now each leopard is taken on their own as they’re not so little anymore and starting to become very playful!

Baby babies...

Our baby baboon troop has grown again with two new arrivals.

Rafiki, named after the baboon in the Lion King, is 3 months old and was found clinging to his mother’s body after she had been shot.

Night time cuddles

Rafiki sleeping tight

Similarly Rudi, who is 8 weeks old, was orphaned when his mother was shot. He is the youngest baboon we have ever had on the farm.

Had these baby baboons not been brought to N/a'an ku se we dread to think what might have happened to them. 

Rudie loves bathtime!

The Senior baboons absolutely LOVE Rudie and they all scramble to get hold of him on the daily senior and baby walks. Luckily Bloomie is there to keep them in check and quickly steps in when Lala, Sarafina and Kayla fight to steal Rudie off one another. Poor Rudie is swung from one baboon to the other as everyone wants to play the mother role. 

Gizmo, our little Cape fox (silvervos) joined us late 2010 and was found on the road to Windhoek. He was only about 2 weeks old and has grown a lot since he arrived on the farm. He loves to explore everything around him. His favorite toy is empty plastic bottles and his own tale. In the morning he takes a bath and soon the sink will be too small for him.

If you would like to adopt Rudie, Rafiki, Gizmo or any of your favourite animals for just N$620 per year (approx £50/€60), email donations@naankuse.com.

 

New arrivals at Naankuse

We’re very excited as the past couple of months has seen the big game on the farm increase to now include Zebra, Kudu, Waterbuck and Giraffe! Watch the video clips to see their arrival, the giraffe one is particularly stunning as the giraffe head out across the magnificent African sunset.

Giraffe Release video 

Zebra & Waterbuck arrival video

We also have new baboon babies, Shauna and Carolla named after... well obviously baboon lovers Shaun and Carol!!

8 month old Shauna arrived in July. She was brought to us by a family who found her mum shot in the stomach in December 2009 in the North West of Namibia. They saw movement and discovered the baby inside so they took her out and raised her for the next 8 months. They knew they couldn't continue to look after her and give her the space and life she needed so they brought her to us.

Carolla’s story is just as sad as her mother was also shot on a farm. We were contacted and went and collected her in Okahandja.

We also have a new addition to the caracal group although she does not stay with the other caracals. She was captured on a farm about 20km away from the sanctuary as she was catching young springbok. During the capture the gate to the capture cage fell on her foot and removed two toes in the process. We’re not sure if we can release her back into the wild, because she will struggle to catch her prey with her missing toes.

Please email donations@naankuse.com if you would like to adopt one of our new arrivals or one of the old favourites and help us to continue to provide a safe sanctuary for the orphaned and injured animals of Africa.

Wild Dog Pups Arrive at Naankuse

Our 14 stunning wild dog pups arrived at N/a’an ku sê in June; there’s Purdy, Lilly, Lilah, Alice, Utopia, Nesha, Mogwai, Cali, Magic, Kevala, Boris, Robert, Rudie and Wiko. Watch the wild dog pup video

  

• Wild Dogs are Namibia's most endangered mammal species and continue to be widely persecuted
• Only an estimated 250 wild dogs remain in the wild in Namibia
• Only 5% of their range is within protected areas in Namibia

Thankfully Rudie was contacted when the pups were taken out of a den in the Mangetti strip of farmland in Namibia. Rudie and Marlice flew up the following to rescue the pups as they were in danger of human persecution.

The pups were just a few weeks old and are now in the safety of our sanctuary, where they are kept in isolation to minimize the chances of disease transmission. The pups were originally fed three times on minced chicken mixed with calcium powder but have since moved onto game and are growing quickly!

This is a very exciting time for N/a’an ku sê as we hope that the pups will grow up to be a strong and healthy part of the Wild dog population in Namibia as part of a new Wild dog breeding and release programme to save this incredible species.

In order to care for, feed and ensure the safety of the 14 pups in our charge, we need to secure the funds to build a large enclosure for them to live in as they grow as well as cover the costs of their ever growing food bill. If you would like to adopt one of the pups and help contribute to the conservation of this highly endangered species please email donations@naankuse.com 

Ostriches on the loose

Our four dancing ostriches have been the centre of much entertainment over the last couple of months, running manically around the farm and showing off their best dance moves. They have become more and more confident and aren’t afraid of approaching people anymore. Therefore, we decided it was time for them to regain their independence and released them to roam freely in the wider reserve. 


Now we often see three of the ostriches walking up and down the border fence, looking for the way out. The silly ostriches think it’s a larger chicken pen where they used to spend their nights and are looking for the gate! One of the ostriches can’t quite tear himself away from us and keeps coming back to the farm to see us all.

Samira’s new camp

Our beautiful cheetah, Samira, has been on the move this week as she has had a new and very large enclosure built for her next to the volunteer’s area on the farm. She seems to be enjoying life in her new enclosure, exploring her new space and freedom. And she clearly seems to relish the constant company as she’s always near the fence ready and waiting for people to visit her. And now she’s right next to the volunteers’ rooms they can visit her as and when they like and give her all the fuss and attention she loves.

Express Donkey Cart

Our Donkey cart, the ‘Sarah Stapleton Express’ is now up and running! Built by the Bushmen and painted by volunteers, our cart is all ready to go, thanks to our sponsor Sarah Stapleton. We have brought in a group of donkeys who we are training to lead the cart, which will carry our volunteers, supervised by Bushman worker Soloman, around the border fence each day.

It is important that the border fence is checked for holes or any damage that may have been caused by animals overnight and that repairs are made immediately. So we’ve introduced the Donkey cart as an economical and environmentally friendly way of circulating the border to carry out this work.

Wild Horses

Marlice has brought her wild horses onto the farm and they now reside in the kraal near the big baboon camp. The horses are steadily being trained so that people can ride them and we hope one day that volunteers will be able to ride the horses regularly as part of a daily activity. Caramella, Dominantis and Rubain are taken out most days and gradually becoming used to people and seem to enjoy their walks around the felt.

Shakira and Ombeli

Our gorgeous little leopard cubs are growing so quickly we won’t be able to call them little for long. They’re starting to be just bit of a handful at feeding time, especially the male, Ombeli.  He gobbles down his portion and then tries to take Shakira’s too.

Both are becoming very proficient tree-climbers, though Ombeli is not always a good judge of whether or not a branch will hold his weight. As the bigger of the two cubs, he falls, shakes himself, and races up the tree again. To keep these young cubs entertained and to encourage their development of climbing skills, we have built them two climbing frames and platforms in their camp which they seem to love – every day there are seen sitting on top of one of the platforms or using them to shade from the hot African sun.


 

We’re currently fundraising to build them a permanent camp here at N/a’an ku sê, as it’s unlikely they’ll be able to be released back into the wild after their poor start in life. If you or anyone you know would like to donate towards the camp, please email donationsnaankuse@iway.na.

Sheep will be sheep

After much deliberation and painful separation (well for Dara anyway), we decided that it was about time Mini, Toto, Mavis and Benjie followed their true sheep (and goat) instincts and joined the rest of the sheep and goats on the other side of the farm. They have now left the comforts of their nightly chicken pen and are experiencing life as a real farm animal. At least the volunteers can now eat their lunch in peace without having to fend off intruding noses!

The farm wouldn’t be the same without some kind of sheep or goat to look after though, and just last month, little Eddie the lamb joined us. Born to one of our flock, he was rejected by his mother, so Dara, our resident mother to all lost lambs and goats, has taken him under her wings. He spends his days with Lilly and the bunnies in the rabbit pen and each evening he’s wrapped up warm in Dara’s house.

Meerkats on the move
The best-laid plans ... when you’re dealing with meerkats - it’s wise to be flexible! The move to their new quarters took place successfully and they were happy about being big meerkats and FREE. But then they decided to be really free and Stein and George have gone off to do their own thing! They are still sighted regularly as the new colony is quite near the waterhole where the leopard cubs go for their daily walk, and food is taken to them every couple of days.
  

Frank and Violet often return to the farm though. One day recently Frank decided that the grass outside the kitchen is his, and tail held straight up, he took a fast run at the geese who were peacefully sleeping there. With a great squawking, they fled. Half an hour later, he did the same to the four peacocks.   

 

In loving Memory

The farm at N/a’an ku sê has experienced some sadness over recent months as a few of our favourite furry friends have passed away.
 

Schoonie, our one-eyed mouse-hunting Jack Russell, adored by each and every volunteer who met her, sadly died a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately, Schoonie was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Stood behind Donkey, she was accidently hit as Donkey stepped back. Schoonie, one of the most beloved animals at N/a’an ku sê, will be sorely missed by us all here.

Our unique, crazy little springhare, JJ, couldn't survive a fierce hailstorm that descended upon us and sadly died of hypothermia the following day.

Whitetail, one of the cheetah cubs living with Lucky who joined us last year, tragically passed away last month. Whitetail had the unusual habit of licking the sand in his camp, which we have deduced become poisoned after the rain washed the soil and sand down from another area where insect repellent had been laid. We had been assured it was harmless to humans and animals so are devastated at this tragedy.

Our three month old baby Kudu was taken to the vets after she suffered debilitating symptoms from a head injury, and unfortunately died on the journey.

We are devastated at the loss of these special animals and know how much they meant to the people who loved them. They will forever remain in all of our hearts.

Introducing N/a’an ku se’s newest arrivals 

 Lola – our latest baby baboon

Three weeks ago our baby baboon numbers increased again, when Marlin, Bonnie, Clyde and Gus were joined by the very pretty, Lola. We estimate that Lola is 6 months old, so is approximately the same age as Bonnie. This week Lola has come into contact with the senior babies for the first time during the walks, and has adapted surprisingly well considering when she first saw them she screamed the place down. She seems particularly at ease with Sarafina, who loves to groom her.

If you would like to adopt Lola, please email donationsnaankuse@iway.na

Ombeli & Shakira – Our beautiful leopard cubs

Early December saw the arrival of our tiny young leopard cubs, Shakira & Ombeli . When they first arrived at N/a’an ku se the cubs were extremely underweight and malnourished. The cubs had been removed from their mother by a farmer who had captured her in the belief that she was a problem animal. They were approximately 8 weeks old, however, had no fur, just masses of excessive pink skin. 

Since their arrival, Shakira & Ombeli have thrived, and gone from strength to strength. The leopards love their daily walk with our volunteers every afternoon, climbing trees in their natural environment and are already practising their stalking skills. We hope to release the cubs back to the wild when they are strong enough but urgently need to build them a large camp to house them in the meantime.

If you would like to adopt Shakira or Ombeli, make a donation towards their camp or get involved with fundraising we would love to hear from you. Email donationsnaankuse@iway.na

Baby Kudu  

Baby Kudu came to the farm after she was found abandoned in a field. She was only a couple of weeks old when she came to us in January, so required regular bottle feeding. She has developed into quite a character, and roams freely around the volunteer area during the day. We did, however, have to fit her with a tracking collar, as one day she decided to explore the rest of the farm. Search parties were unable to locate her, but after 18 hours, Kudu found her own way back, and at 7am was found waiting at the main volunteer gate!

Pumba – Our comical baby Warthog

Our semi-tame little warthog, Pumba, has really made himself at home on the farm. He came to us as an orphan, but has now been adopted by Babe, Fritzie and the piglets. All six spend every day together, roaming about the volunteer area, getting up to mischief. If you’re really lucky Pumba will come up to you, roll over and wait for you to scratch his belly! Thankfully all of our tortoises have now been released (except the babies), as Pumba had a particular passion for flipping them onto their shells!

Miss Anderson A.K.A. Donkey

Donkey continues to be one of the biggest characters at N/a’an ku se. She spends a small part of her day with her friend Kudu, but the majority of her time is taken up chasing volunteers and staff and looking for attention (and trouble!)

George & Violet – The Meerkats

Frankie & Stein have been joined by 2 more meerkats recently. Firstly came the arrival of George back in December, who was accepted by Frankie & Stein almost immediately. The two males and female became a formidable team in no time, and were always in some kind of trouble. Then two weeks ago, Violet, who originally lived in the bushman village with our other meerkats but has not been seen for some time, was discovered quite emaciated and missing two thirds of her tail. She had obviously been pushed out of the group at some point. Her tail (or stump!) has now healed, and she has now been introduced to our the current trio based at volunteers. We are pleased to say that the introduction has gone very well, and we are hoping to release all 4 together in the very near future.

Farm Updates

The rabbit move
Our rabbits have recently been relocated to a new temporary home, whilst their new permanent patch is under construction. With a lot of hard work from volunteers and staff, Mowgli’s old camp was renovated into a cosy enclosure for the bunnies. It wasn’t an easy task as the camp had to made meerkat proof as they were initially able to climb into the camp through the fence, and we’ve discovered recently that meerkats are not particularly friendly towards our floppy eared friends! We now need to keep a close eye on the rabbits following their recent escapade when they decided to burrow out and have a late evening wander in the pouring rain!

The Great Baboon Escape

Recently the senior baby baboons, led by Sarafina, have discovered ways to escape the confines of their camp at night. Chasing baboons around is the dark is no easy feat, and was made more difficult by the fact that every time they were caught and put back, they escaped again!! We think they just want to have a sociable evening with the volunteers! Repairs and additional electric fencing are currently being added to prevent future crazy nights.

Dancing Ostriches

The farm’s four young ostriches are growing very quickly and are now 6 feet tall. They are also a lot less shy around people, and can be very inquisitive at times. They are very entertaining to watch, as they spend a considerable amount of time chasing each other around, and dancing in circles. At times they will dance around so much, that they have been known to fall over from dizziness!!

Samira’s Shenanigans
 
Lately Samira has been a lot more adventurous when going out for her daily walks. For quite a while, she would usually just do a lap of the house and then return to her camp. Recently however, she has decided that she would like to explore the farm a bit more. Twice in one week she visited the two lions, Aiko, Kiki & Aisha, and even Keanu & Timbila. One of these walks lasted for an epic 6 hours, leaving everyone exhausted. During her mammoth walk, she had also managed to get to the volunteer area, which was not good news for all of the animal residents of the area, as they had to all be put back into their enclosures for their safety. Samira has had a rest from her daily walks since, as she became very stressed out seeing the other large carnivores.

Caracal Walks Return
 
Our daily volunteer caracal walks have recommenced in the past couple of months as they now have their own tracking collars. Currently Cleo and Medusa go for a walk with Johannes and some of the volunteers each morning. We hope that one day Yoda and Godiva will be able to join in but at present, Yoda is not tame enough and Godiva will not tolerate the tracking collar.

Beautiful Lily
Lily, our baby steenbok, who was brought to us in November with a broken back, has recovered magnificently. She has recently moved from the grass area beside the old volunteer accommodation to the chicken pen, which is now the place to be. We moved her as she seemed quite lonely, but in the chicken pen she seems incredibly content wandering around with the various other animal species. She sleeps in there together with Sylvie, Donkey, Kudu, Mavis, Benjie, Mini, Pumba and the pigs at night.