Dak the orphaned Addax

This is Dak……

She is an orphaned Addax Antelope that Dan Cabela found abandoned in the pasture of Asante, his Exotic Game Ranch in the hill country of Texas. Dan watched her over the course of a day and waited to see if the Mom would come back and take over raising her new calf but she never showed up. True to his nature, he bundled her up and brought her into their personal residence area so that he and his wife Darlene could raise her.

When we first drove into the yard we were greeted by this energetic animal and laughed heartily as she danced around us just wanting to say hello…….

The next afternoon, we happened to be there at “feeding time” (now up to every 8 hours). Darlene prepared the “formula” and I had a wonderful time feeding her…..

As Dan noted, not many people can say that they have done this!!!

We tried to get her to pose with us after dinner, but she simply wasn’t interested……

Later that evening she apparently still equated me with food and decided that my shirt looked like a bunch of leaves. It was fun to watch her nibble along the base of the shirt…..

She will live with Dan and Darlene for about 6 more weeks and then will be reintroduced into the herd.

I love that this sweet couple have taken on such a wonderful project to protect the endangered wildlife of Africa……

Our time with them was a perfect ending to a fun and relaxing trip to Austin, Texas!!!