Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy

Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy

The Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy was started in the 1960s by film star William Holden and TV personality Don Hunt, and immediately seized the interest of the then President of Kenya, Jomo Kenyatta. The Animal Orphanage is located within the Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy. The orphanage is home to the endangered Mountain bongo which is less than a hundred worldwide. The orphanage is also home to the injured, neglected, abused, or frightened wild animals where they are taken care of with the goal to release them back into the wild where they belong. Formed in 2004, the Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy helps in raising funds for the wildlife projects of the Mount Kenya Game Ranch. Their goal is to help preserve the unique Mount Kenya ecosystem and biodiversity for all mankind. This conservancy gives orphaned, injured, neglected, abused, or frightened wild animals a second chance. The orphanage provides shelter and professional care with the goal to release these creatures back to the wild where they belong. It’s known for the bongo breeding program and protection of the rare white zebra. It also has an animal orphanage for orphaned, injured, or abused wild animals and an education program that hosts over 10,000 future conservationists. Visitors can become a friend of the conservancy or adopt an animal. The conservancy is now home to 28 species, the rarest of which are breeding herds of mountain bongo and white zebra. It’s deceivingly large and worth asking the guides about each animal’s story. The orphanage has some of the last pygmy hippos in Kenya (which were given to the first president, Jomo Kenyatta) as well as a rescued leopard and cheetahs. As you enter, be prepared for the free-roaming bongos, llamas, and ostriches. Its success is such that there are now plans to release some of the captive-bred antelope into the Mt Kenya forests to bolster the current population of around 70. Children, and anyone who wants to have a baby monkey scramble over their head will love this place.