Fourteen-month-old orphan Moyo, now a resident at Zimbabwe’s only elephant nursery, Wild Is Life, has uniquely liked home comforts since his rescue. After being found lost and nearly drowned along Lake Kariba, Moyo was brought to the nursery under the care of founder Roxy Danckwerts.
From initially allowing him to climb on furniture, Roxy’s home has become Moyo’s playground, with the young elephant happily munching on houseplants, rummaging through the fridge, and even enjoying the taste of silverware. “He’s a naughty elephant,” Roxy admits, noting he’s now too large to fit comfortably on the sofa.
In the BBC series, Nature’s Miracle Orphans, zoologist and TV presenter Lucy Cooke meets Moyo and witnesses his playful antics firsthand.
She observes him spreading powdered milk around the kitchen and later learns that Moyo’s mischief is just one aspect of Roxy’s mission to prepare him for life back in the wild.
Roxy teaches him essential elephant behaviors, from taking sand baths to respecting social hierarchies. Caring for Moyo is a full-time job, as he drinks 22 liters of specialized milk daily to help him grow strong and healthy.
Wild Is Life, situated near Harare, has been Roxy’s home for nearly two decades and has hosted many animal rescues.
However, Moyo is her first elephant, weighing less than half the average birth weight for calves when he was rescued from encroaching hyenas.
Now a thriving 18-stone, Moyo is adjusting to a life filled with new friends, including Josephine the dog, a recovering baby giraffe named Sky, Noodles the gnu, and Pickles the warthog.
His closest companion, however, is a sheep named Kimi, who provides a constant presence and helps Moyo learn herd behavior.
Moyo also joins four other young elephants, which helps him develop social skills and ease his fear of water.
Because of the trauma of nearly drowning, Moyo avoids deep water, so a special shallow pool was built to encourage him to paddle comfortably.
The show also explores other young animals facing similar journeys. Two lion cubs, Africa and Alika, live at Antelope Park, a few hours from Wild Is Life, where conservationist Leigh Anne Webb teaches them hunting skills.
These cubs playfully pounce on branches and later hunt grassy giraffe and zebra models stuffed with meat, learning essential survival instincts.
Although Alika typically “makes the kill,” Africa, the male, instinctively claims the first bite, reflecting their natural pride dynamics.
Lucy’s most touching experience came from visiting a rhino orphanage where a young rhino, badly injured by poachers, received care at South Africa’s Care For Wild Africa sanctuary.
Under founder Petronel Nieuwoudt’s guidance, the center provides a gradual release process for orphaned rhinos, beginning with supervised feeding enclosures and ending with protected release zones.
Lucy witnessed the moment young rhinos were released into their new habitat, a deeply emotional experience as they joyfully integrated with other rhinos.
This sanctuary work highlights African wildlife’s ongoing struggles, from elephant and lion orphan rescues to protecting endangered rhinos.
For Lucy and the caretakers, these animals’ resilience and recovery underscore the dedication required to give each orphan a chance to thrive in the wild.