Nandutu: The human mother to an African lion

Growing up, like many youngsters, 29-year-old Esther Nandutu always wanted to become a doctor and save human lives. Not even in her slightest or wildest dreams did she ever picture herself as a zookeeper or tending wild animals.

“I always wanted to be a doctor at my A-Level, I studied Physics, Biology and Chemistry, but I failed to make it into medical school. I settled for a Bachelor in Conservation Education,” she says.

During her field attachment, she worked with Uganda Wildlife Conservation Education Centre (UWEC) where she learnt of the possibility of becoming a zookeeper, when she applied for a permanent role she was accepted.

For six years now, Nandutu has worked as a zookeeper and animal care expert at UWEC in Entebbe Municipality, Wakiso District.

The fear of wild animals is known to  plague many, but Nandutu’s passion and love for animals were enough to propel her forward.

“I have been able to overcome my fear of animals with time and I am happy seeing animals feeling free from injury and danger. It makes my job more fulfilling,” she says, adding: “Going out to rescue animals from communities and tracking their progress through rehabilitation is a reward in itself. We can educate communities about conservation.”

Routine

Nandutu’s daily routine includes inspecting animals to ensure their health, providing tailored food based on individual needs, maintaining clean enclosures, and observing animal behaviour to document any changes.

Some days, Nandutu extends her duties to assisting with the centre’s premium experiences, such as “Zookeeper for a Day” and “Behind the Scenes” tours. During these tours, she guides tourists through her daily routine, allowing them to interact closely with the animals and gain firsthand experience of her work.

Raising an African lion cub

Nandutu says the biggest milestone in her journey as a zookeeper is hand-raising an African lion cub, Landlord— a survivor of four cubs born to a first-time mother, Sofia.

Sofia was rescued from the wild as a cub and kept at Uwec when she gave birth for the first time, “she delivered four premature cubs, but only Landlord survived. Owing to the aggressive nature of the mother, we had to take over the care of Landlord,” she revealed.

“I had never come in close contact with these majestic creatures, especially at a tender age. They are just like puppies, they are so playful and they require a great deal of care and love like a human baby,” Nandutu explains.

One of the far more challenging issues in raising Landlord was finding the right feed, she says “Uganda does not produce feed for wild animals and if we need to find processed food we have to import,” she says.

Relying on an already curated animal care and welfare programme at the centre and learning from experts at the centre, Nandutu and her fellow keepers were able to find the right meal plan for the young African cub.

“We have been able to develop a proper diet for our cubs, for Landlord we used to blend milk and meat until he was about six months old. We used to bottle-feed him,” she explains.

Bonding with Landlord

“We were able to create a bond with Landlord, although it was a similar bond with the other three keepers because everyone has off-duty days in a week,” Nandutu explains.

But before he was six months old, per the centre’s policy they had to detach themselves from Landlord, gradually to ensure he regains his wild nature regardless of being kept in a captive setting.

“We understand that a wild animal remains wild and its behaviour can change anytime, also we did not know the animal’s fate since we are required to release animals into the wild,” she explains.

Like weaning a child, they started to cut on the time spent in contact with the animal before he was finally integrated with the pride at the centre.

Due to her outstanding work, Nandutu was awarded a scholarship to travel to Barcelona, Spain, to attend the International Conference of Zookeepers. During the conference, she delivered a presentation on her expertise in hand-raising an African lion cub, showcasing her valuable contributions to the field of animal care and welfare.