Throughout infancy they must be fed at four hourly intervals during the day only. A comfortable stable, a little mudwallow, a 'midden' or dungpile, and a mother figure, are all it takes to make a baby rhino contented and happy. The orphaned rhinos hand-raised by the Trust in Nairobi National Park ultimately live perfectly normal rhino lives within an established wild community. This is a pruning role, that is extremely beneficial to the balance of the pastures that support all the indigenous species. With huge grinding molars, a rhino keeps the shrubs and bushes short and within the reach of others, stimulating new, soft growth that other species with softer more tender mouths can utilise.
Many people think that rhinos are aggressive and stupid, an idea rooted in ignorance.
In fact, rhinos are extremely sophisticated and successful animals and were it not for the myth surrounding their horn, and human greed, the two species indigenous to Africa would still be represented in sizeable numbers. Formerly, only the elite could afford such a luxury, but oil wealth has now put rhino horn within easy reach. Where rhinos have been ruthlessly persecuted, they can be aggressive, simply because they feel threatened since attack is their means of defence. Unmolested, rhinos are extremely docile animals and easy to tame. At such times, the only thing to do is to get out of the way fast, for the animal is not in conscious control of its actions.