These caretakers at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Nairobi, Kenya, will never ignore the elephant in the room. In fact, they took decades settling on the exact mixture of human baby formula and coconut milk that would best replicate what these orphaned elephants would have received from their mothers in the wild. With that settled, the caretakers have moved on to finding the formula for the cutest elephant raincoat imaginable. They’re pretty close to nailing that one, too. – Adam K. Raymond
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Photo: Michael Nichols/NGS
Keepers protect a baby elephant from the cold and rain with a custom-made raincoat.
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Photo: Michael Nichols/NGS
The oldest orphan elephants lie down to invite the younger ones to play on top of them.
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Photo: Michael Nichols/NGS
Orphan elephants playfully vie for a bottle of formula.
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Photo: Michael Nichols/NGS
A two-week-old fragile elephant orphan is swaddled with a blanket.